The Mysterious Blue Haired Kampfer
by Setsuna F. Satoru
Summary: The world is a changed place. Nine years ago, the Moderators created the Kampfers, in conjunction with most of the world's governments. Red and Blue, to settle a millennia long war, but also the peacekeepers, White, and the strange and inexplicable Black.
1. Chapter 1

A few notes before we begin:

First off, the entire concept for this variation of the Kampfer world came from Asakust's "Re:Kampfer" story, so really, I'm almost doing a fanfic of that fancfic. I just thought I needed to give credit where credit was due.

The use of gender-based pronouns is going to be a little wacked up here, so bear with me. "He" (and other male pronouns) will be used always when the story is from Natsuru's perspective. If it is from anyone else's, then the pronoun will change based on his gender. If not from anyone's perspective, but in purely third person, "he" will be the default.

The characters in this look the same as the manga/anime, however I cannot figure out how to describe some of the characters, so if I say nothing, just assume they look identical.

If you know the original story of Kampfer, this will be a bit different: The Moderators decided that a massive battle, thousands of light-years away, for which they are to be the mediators of, would be better resolved in a smaller, more controlled setting. This said, they could not allow the actual contestants in the war to get involved, because they would escalate it back to what it originally was, so they settled on a remote planet on the edge of the galaxy to settle the dispute on. Unlike in the Manga and Anime, they contacted the governments of the fledgling civilization of Earth and offered them a trade: Certain humans (of any gender) would be fighters in the war, but they would not be allowed to die, merely get injured or in extreme case lose the supernatural abilities that were given to the chosen: the Kampfer. In exchange the Moderators would lend them some technology that was, to the Moderators, simple, but to humans was very advanced. Most—not all, but most—governments on Earth agreed to this, with a few changes. Moderators were not allowed to chose the people for what their supernatural ability had the potential to be, but their current potential for combat and strategy. Also, along with red and blue, white and black Kampfers would be created: the white as "referees" in battles and the eyes and ears of the Moderators, the black as the eyes and ears of the governments. Both were rumored to have extravagant extra abilities. All of this was announced to the public and became "law" nine years ago.

Chapter 1

Natsuru Senou awoke to something strange. He had fallen asleep facedown, and someone had put a pillow underneath his chest. And a cloth over his head. He groggily reached up to remove the cloth to find that, to his surprise, it was not a cloth but his own hair. He started to get a bad feeling. He was about to get up to check the alarm clock beside his bed, when he noticed a more subtle change. He was wearing a blue ceramic bracelet with no apparent way to get it off. His stomach lurched. He knew that bracelet! It was that of a blue Kampfer.

He nearly leapt out of bed. Him! He was a Kampfer! Seitetsu Gakuin High School was mostly Red territory, but the student president was Blue, along with some other powerful Schwertz and Gewehr, though there was only one Blue Zauber, who were fairly rare and powerfull.

He was practically giddy. Which would he be—a badass Gewehr with their quick and accurate gun and pistols, a lethal Schwertz with their razor sharp blades and agile bodies, or maybe even a Zauber with their raw magic power and quick reflexes. Any of them would be perfect.

Then he noticed himself in the mirror in his room. Or…he thought it was himself. Now he understood the "pillow" underneath his chest. He had heard about the downside of being a Kampfer: besides fighting on a whim, their Kampfer forms often were changed. A hideous person might become beautiful, and vice-versa, or they may be shy and quiet as their normal forms and completely outspoken and wild as a Kampfer. The change could be slight; blue eyes could turn green, or they could be extreme; a responsible, mature young man could become a wild party maniac in Kampfer form. But none of them that Natsuru had heard of, not one, had been this big of a change.

Because in the mirror, where Natsuru should be was a busty, curvy, high school _girl_.

She had hair that was pulled back in the back, and hang loose in the front, and was precisely the same color of blue as Natsuru's. In fact, if she wasn't a hot girl, she could be mistaken for Natsuru; same eye color, hair color, features (although her's were both cuter and more feminine), and even the same hight. She was even wearing the same clothes he had worn to bed. He was both glad and a bit disappointed that he had gone to bed fully dressed.

At this point things became too much for him, and he collapsed back into his bed, blacking out.

The next mourning, Natsuru woke up with an unexplained bad feeling. He felt like he had had a bad dream, or…then he noticed the blue bracelet, and what had happened in the night came rushing back to him.

He jumped up and started running his hands up and down his body; yes, he was a guy again. This didn't solve his bigger problem.

He ran to the bathroom and found some gauze in a medicine closet. He knew that if he went to school with the bracelet openly visible, people would notice he had become a Kampfer, and would ask to see his Kampfer form. Normally, why shouldn't he? Kampfer forms were stronger, faster, and generally cooler than normal people, and Kampfers were held in high regard at school. Normally, becoming a Kampfer would be one of the best things that could happen, would throw him up into being one of the most popular people in the school.

Not for him, though. Natsuru knew that if he showed _his _Kampfer form to anyone, he would merely get ridiculed.

So, he had to hide it. He wrapped the gauze around his bracelet and wrist. Now he had a sprained wrist. He would just have to remember to rub it a little and act like it hurt.

After that was done he put on his school uniform, ate a quick breakfast while scribbling a few answers in the homework he forgot to do, packed up, and left for school.

He got to the bus stop a bit late, and just barely managed to catch the bus. He quickly jumped in the nearest empty seat, and then pulled back a little as he realized who he was sitting next to.

He had liked Sakura Kaede since middle school, but had never actually worked up the courage to confess to her yet. She was one of the schools two idols, what if she turned him down. And even more threatening, what would the rest of the guys (not to mention a few girls) do to him if she didn't?

The brown haired beauty smiled at him angelically. "Good morning, Natsuru-san!"

He hoped that he what he was doing was smiling. "G-good morning." He managed to muster.

"Are you hurt?" She asked him, only a hint of concern in her voice.

"Uh…Oh!" Natsuru said, realizing that she had noticed the gauze. "A little, it's just a sprain."

"That's good, I hope it heals up soon." She replied, turning back to looking out the window.

A few minuets later, the bus reached the boy's side stop. Seitetsu Gakuin was technically a co-ed school, but it was separated into a girl's side and a boy's side. The only times that you were allowed to go into the opposite side were during the yearly cultural festival and if you were a Kampfer in battle.

"Have a nice day, Natsuru-san!" Kaede called out cheerfully.

"Y-y-you t-too." Natsuru replied as he disembarked the bus.

She watched him leave. He was a very nice boy, but it was clear as day that he liked her. She was glad he never brought it up, as she would have hated to turn him down.

Natsuru hurried into his classroom, hoping no one would stop him to ask about his wrist. He made it to his classroom without incident and quietly sank into his seat.

There was a tap on his shoulder and he turned around to see his friend Higashida Kanji with a camera quickly snap his picture.

"Mornin', Senou" Kanji greeted and continued to take his picture.

Kanji was the head of the Seitetsu Gakuin Hottie Research Club, was also big in the school newspaper, and was never without his camera. More importantly, Kanji was a Red Gewehr Kampfer.

"Hey, Kanji," Natsuru asked, "what's the most extreme Kampfer transformation you've ever seen?"

"Hmm…I think it's got to be that Blue Akane on the girl's side. Her normal form is shy and…not terribly attractive, but her Kampfer form is _hot_." Kanji replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Uh… no reason." Natsuru said.

"Hey, what'd you do to your arm?" Kanji asked, pointing at Natsuru's wrist.

"Oh, uh, nothing, it's just a sprain. It's no big deal." Natsuru answered.

Class started, and most of the day went by without incident for Natsuru, who was beginning to believe that this would not be so hard as he imagined. Fate had different plans, it seemed.

At lunch Natsuru sat in his usual place with his usual friends, a mix of normal people, a couple Reds, two White Kampfers, and only one Blue, besides him. Now that he thought about it, it seemed that there were very few Blues on the Boys side. After a quick count, he saw only seven.

"Why is it that _we _never get the hot girls?" Complained Kanji to the others. "I mean, Sakura Kaede is a White. The student president is a Blue. But the Reds get no one!"

"Oh, shut your whinin'!" Said Nakamura Mamoru, the only other Blue at the table. "You think you've got it bad, look at the Blacks they…" he trailed off, realizing that he had hit a taboo subject.

The Blacks were trusted by no one. They kept to themselves, and no one knew their identities. Black bracelets were invisible to anyone who didn't wear one, and in Kampfer form, they all wore concealing masks. No one knew who the Blacks were or what their purpose was, other than to report to the HMR, the international organization for regulating Kampfers. If there were one way that Natsuru's situation could have been worse, it would have been if he were a Black.

After the awkward pause, conversation slowly restarted, back on the topic of girls.

The rest of the school day went by and nothing happened, until just after school let out.

Natsuru was on the way out of the building when the intercom blared the message: "The Reds have initiated a Kampfer Proxy Battle. All students are advised to either leave the grounds or go to one of the designated classrooms. All idle Kampfer have been asked to report to their team captains immediately."

Natsuru was on his way down the stairs when the announcement came, and almost immediately the bracelet under the gauze began to glow. He looked around at the crowded stairwell, turned and ran back up the stairs.

When he reached the roof he leapt out and slammed the door, just in time, as the minuet it closed, the glow from the bracelet grew momentarily blinding, and when it faded, Natsuru was in his Kampfer form. He shook the gauze off his now much slimmer wrist, exposing the bracelet marking him as a Blue.

Now that he was on the roof, he realized just what a bad choice of places it was. The roof was mostly where the Whites were, standing watch over the proceedings. He could see Kaede standing at the highest point, her being the White Captain, and others standing still as statues on lower perches. It was a miracle they hadn't noticed him when he transformed.

Looking down at himself, he noticed that his uniform had changed from a boy's to a girl's. It seemed though, that all of the fabric was used, so some from the pants became thigh-length socks, reaching almost up to the uncomfortably short skirt. Natsuru's face reddened as he realized that his underclothes had become a bra and panties.

Natsuru turned his attention down to the grounds to avoid going further with those thoughts. From where he was, he could see the entire front of the school, both the boys' and the girls' sides. Nine Blues were in between two large groups of Reds, cut off from help from any side. Just beyond the Reds to the left was a large group of Blues, attempting to come to their comrades' rescue, but were being held back by the left side Reds. Coming out of the school's main doors were three girls, Blues: Shizuku Sangu, the class president and a massively powerful Schwertz user, Akane Mishima, the student librarian and a very powerful Gewehr user, and Tanaka Katsumi, the one and only Blue Zauber.

Then some thing very odd began to happen. All of the groups began to close inward on themselves. There were masked forms surrounding each group. Blacks.

Suddenly a form flew up from the ground at Kaede. Natsuru was sure it would never reach it's mark, Kaede being five stories above the fight, but it showed no signs of slowing or falling. Panic suddenly began to rise in Natsuru's throat. Blacks were said to dislike Whites, so if it reached Sakura-san…

Reflexively, Natsuru raised his hand, palm facing out at the Black Kampfer, and without any knowledge of how he did it, sent a wave of heat out at the Kampfer. As it traveled from his hand it grew and glowed until it was a massive ball of flame hurling at the Black. At the last minuet the Black turned in midair to face the oncoming threat and took the fireball straight to the chest, throwing them, smoking, to the ground.

The grounds grew silent as everyone turned to look at Natsuru. He glanced nervously at everyone on the grounds below, then darted for the stairwell and made his escape.

Minagawa Hitomi was the current Red Captain, and she took Proxy Battles both very lightly and very seriously. It was her goal to make Seitetsu Gakuin High School a purely Red territory. That was not to say, though, that she disliked the Blues, in fact the Blue Captain, Shizuku Sangu was one of her closest friends. Which was why she took it all the more personally when the Blues hid a Kampfer, especially such a powerful Zauber.

"Fall back!" She called "Looks like they got one on us. We can't fight with a Zauber up there to pick us off."

There was grumbling from the Reds as they transformed back and slowly dispersed.

Hitomi walked angrily up to the Blue captain, who was a Kampfer that didn't undergo physical change to transform, and so looked exactly the same.

"I can't believe you hid a Zauber user." She accused loudly "Who is she?"

"Actually," Sangu replied quietly, "I'm not sure who she is either."

This stopped Hitomi for a moment. The blue-haired girl on the roof _had _been wearing a Blue bracelet, but maybe she could be new. Hitomi wasn't ready to back down yet.

"Well when you figure it out, be sure to tell me." she snarled at the Blue Captain as she turned and walked away. As she did she heard a bit of the conversation between the three Blues there.

"Akane," Sangu said quietly, "I want you to follow that girl next time. Whenever you see her next, follow her and find out who she is."

"Aww, why do I gotta do all the hard jobs?" came the Blue Gewehr's reply.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The next day Natsuru woke up frustrated. It had taken him six hours after he got home to transform back into a guy. He was looking forward to when he could control his tranformation. Then he would never have to participate in a battle.

He rewrapped his bracelet and left for school praying that there wasn't another fight. At least large-scale battles like that were pretty rare. He just hoped that there would be no fights at all.

He got to the bus stop a bit late again, and, again ended up sitting next to Kaede.

"Good morning, Natsuru-san." She said, seeming a bit preoccupied.

""M-m-morning, Sakura-san." Natsuru replied.

There was silence for an uncomfortable moment, then Kaede turned to him.

"Did you see the Proxy Battle yesterday?" She asked, trying to sound less interested than she was.

"Uh…" Natsuru settled on the simplest lie. "No I wasn't watching it, I had left."

"So you didn't see the mysterious Blue Kampfer?" Kaede asked disappointedly.

Natsuru's stomach did a backflip. "M-mysterious Blue K-Kampfer?" he stammered, trying to sound intrigued.

Kaede looked at Natsuru. He seemed to be more nervous than normal, but maybe she was imagining it.

"Yeah, she was amazing!" Kaede replied, "There was a Black Kampfer that was trying to attack me and suddenly this huge ball of fire came and knocked him right out of the sky."

Natsuru tried to think of something normal to say. "B-but I thought the Blues h-had only one Z-Zauber."

"I thought so too. I guess Shizuku-san kept one hidden. Maybe I'll ask her…" she trailed off thoughtfully.

When Natsuru got to class, he noticed something on his desk. It was the school newspaper. On the front page was a picture of…him in Kampfer form, up on the roof. It was a fuzzy picture, but you could make out the face and body. Natsuru suddenly noticed how attractive the girl in the picture was, but he quickly pushed that notion out of his head. It was _him _after all.

Kanji came up behind him. "Well I thought you'd like it, but you seem utterly absorbed!"

Natsuru whirled around. "Oh, uh, you left this here?"

Kanji smiled widely. "Yep, and not only that, I _took _that picture. Go on, read the article!"

Natsuru did. It started with the headline: "Elusive Blue Hottie Saves School Idol and White Captain Sakura Kaede from an Attack by a Black!" and just got worse from there, recapping the event and going into three pages of detail about how the Blue Kampfer stopped the Black and what she looked like.

"Umm…yeah Sakura-san told me about this on the bus this morning. I—" Natsuru was cut off by Kanji:

"You talked to Sakura Kaede? When? Is this normal? Can I hit you up for an interview?"

"I—um—well—" luckily Natsuru was saved from answering by class starting.

A floor above them, on the divide between the boys' side and the girls' side, the student president's office was crowded and loud.

Shizuku Sangu had a lot on her mind, not least of which was the identity of this new Blue Zauber. Unfortunatly, there was no quiet for her to think; her office was currently occupied by both Sakura Kaede and Minagawa Hitomi, demanding answers.

"How is it that hard to find out who she is?" Hitomi was yelling at her.

"You mean you don't know either?" Kaede asked, obviously disappointed. She had just walked in.

"What puzzles me," Sangu replied "is why you both feel you need to know."

At that Kaede blushed a bit and turned her eyes down. Hitomi, however, was unabashed.

"Of _course _we need to know! We're _Captains,_ don't we have a right to know?"

"Well," Sangu responded, "maybe _Kaede _does, she needs to report to the Moderators, but you are my enemy, why should you be one of the first to know?"

Hitomi waved it off. "We're also friends. I tell you about my Kampfer, you tell me about yours, even Kaede tells us about her Kampfer, the only people who don't bother are…Blacks."

Sangu knew that Hitomi would compare her to a Black Kampfer sometime; it was the worst insult in her repertoire.

"I'm not a Black Kampfer, Hitomi. When I find out who she is, I'll be sure to tell you. Now, please I have other appointments and if you ever want me to figure out who this Blue Kampfer is, you really need to let me get some work done."

Kaede quickly got up and left the room, Hitomi following sullenly behind her.

Sangu turned her attention to Akane, who had just walked into the office.

"Anything?"

Akane snorted. "Yeah, I wish. There ain't no leads _anywhere_. I'm thinking we better make ourselves a fight to lure her out."

Sangu sighed. She really didn't want to resort to this. "Alright, I guess we've got no choice. Be at the main entrance as soon as classes let out."

By the end of the day, Hitomi had managed to cool off and accept that it was _possible _that Sangu knew nothing about the Blue Kampfer. Her anger towards Sangu had almost completely died when Sangu stopped her on the way out of school.

"Hitomi, why would you ever think I would have told you who she was?" Sangu asked her maliciously. She didn't seem to be acting like her normal self.

Then the meaning of what she said began to sink in the anger that had died away began to resurface.

"You mean you _do_ know!" she yelled at Sangu.

"Doesn't really matter, does it? You won't know, so…" Sangu began to turn to leave.

Before she knew what she was doing, Hitomi had transformed and sent an arch of lighting hurling in Sangu's direction. Sangu, though seemed to have been…expecting it, in fact she looked…triumphant as she deflected the Zauber attack with her blades.

"Were you _trying_ to fight me!" Hitomi exclaimed, annoyed.

Sangu just smiled slightly as she hurled one of her daggers at Hitomi.

Hitomi had already leapt out of the way and was preparing for Sangu to swing it around at her, when Sangu tugged on the chain, pulling the dagger back to her hand and freezing.

"Akane, go!" she called, and the form of the Blue Gewehr leapt from behind her and ran into the park next to the school.

Sangu turned to Hitomi, "Sorry I had to do that. We needed a strong fighting intent to root out the Zauber."

Hitomi narrowed her eyes, nothing forgiven. "Just be sure to tell me when you find out."

Natsuru had almost made it. He had made it down the stairwell and out the main door when suddenly a fight had broken out. He couldn't see who it was or hear what was being said, but his bracelet had begun to glow. When he ran out of the school grounds he had made it to a hidden little grove in the park when he transformed.

He looked down at himself, hoping he wouldn't meet anyone on the walk back home. He managed to make it three quarters of the way there when someone stopped him.

"Hey, babe, wanna hang over at my house tonight?" called one of the guys. None of them were students at Seitetsu Gakuin, so there was no danger of him being recognized. By the looks of them, though, that would not be the least of his problems.

One of them sidled up next to him. "Come on, baby, we can give you a nice night…" the guy ran his hand up Natsuru's side and stopped when he reached his chest. It was an odd and—sickly—not unpleasant feeling as the pervert began to squeeze his chest.

Natsuru brought his leg up into the guy's crotch and he doubled over, immediately Natsuru wrestled free from his grasp and ran as fast as he could away, thanking god for the supernatural speed given to Kampfers.

He didn't stop running until he made it to his house, where he opened the door, slammed it shut, locked it, dead bolted it, and then checked to make sure all the curtains were closed. He threw himself into his couch and tried to convince himself that that whole encounter had not happened. He hadn't made much progress when there was a knock on the door.

He froze, then slowly got up and checked the peephole. To his surprise it was not the three guys from before coming back to rape him. It was a girl wearing the Seitetsu Gakuin uniform-Akane Mishima.

He tried to sound like he normally did, in male form. "Y-yes, w-what do you want?" he stuttered out.

Through the peephole, he saw Akane smile wickedly. "Just shut the fuck up and open this door by the time I count to ten or I am going to shoot that door to hell and you with it if I got to. One…"

Natsuru fumbled with the deadbolt.

"Three…

He unlocked it as fast as he could.

"Five..."

He struggled with the door, having trouble with his sweaty hands trying to get a grasp on it.

"Nine…"

At the last second he threw the door open and jumped back a little as he saw the gun pointed at—well, it used to be at the door but now—him.

Akane pulled her gun back and smiled cheerfully as if this kind of thing happened every day. "Hey, so there you are! You gonna let me in?"

Natsuru, on auto-pilot, silently opened the door wider and stepped out of the doorway. Akane strode into the house.

"Well, I guess I can go back to the Prez and tell 'er I found that Zauber she was look'n for, eh?" Akane asked as she looked around at Natsuru's house. "I'm Akane. If I'm gonna be workn' with ya I better know your name, eh?"

Natsuru slowly understood that this meant she _didn't _know who he was, and she had just followed him here.

"I'm N-nasturu s-Senou, I—" Then he realized his mistake.

"You what?" Akane's eyes narrowed in suspision.

He couldn't figure out what he could do to take it back. "I-I'm a second year at Seitetsu Gakuin."

Akane smiled. "Heh-so am I. I don't recognize you though…" She looked even more suspicious.

"Um-I don't go often—I've been ill." Natsuru prayed she wouldn't ask any more questions about his identity.

"How long?" Akane ask nodding to his bracelet.

"I-uh-" he decided on the truth "just since a couple nights ago."

Akane whistled, impressed. "That was one nice bit of Zauber magic yesterday for your first time."

"I—" Natsuru stopped as his bracelet began to glow.

"Oh," Akane said, noticing it too, "yeah, now that you're away from that little battle we set up…."

Natsuru jumped and made for the bathroom. "I've got to—" he stopped when Akane grabbed his arm.

"You're tryn' to hide somethin' bitch?" she asked, the suspicion returning, "Just stay here a minute."

Natsuru struggled to break free, but it proved futile. His bracelet's glow grew brighter and brighter until he reverted back to male form.

Akane's grip loosened as she stared in incomprehension. Why was she now holding the wrist of some pathetic looking guy… then she began to understand, and first a smile, then bursts of laughter rose up in her.

"HAHAH—you got it hard! HAHAH! Oh my, quite a few guys are goin' to be disappointed with this! Hahah!" 

Now she was doubled up with laughter. She had a hard transformation, but changing personalities was _nothing_ compared to this.

She slowly stopped laughing as she noticed the expression on his face. He looked pretty pitiful.

"Right," she said straightening up and trying with moderate success to hold back her amusemt. "Well, better get this to the Captain."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The next day, Natsuru found himself at the student president's office before school. Akane was explaining what had happened the afternoon before, and his face was red with embarrassment throughout the entire time.

"So, you are _sure _that he transforms completely in Kampfer form?" Shizuku Sangu was asking Akane, barely concealing a smile underneath her hand.

Akane, who was now in her normal form, looked embarrassed herself as she answered, "Well the expression on his…her…um…Natsuru's face when the boys…touched him looked pretty real." She looked like she was almost as embarrassed to be saying it as Natsuru was. Sangu, on the other hand, looked like she was barely holding back laughter at the twos' discomfort at the subject.

"Yes, well," she replied, here shoulders shaking a little with repressed mirth, "I think that a…test like that is very hard to dispute. It would be very difficult for him to fake-" she stopped, failing to hide her laughter, "sexual pleasure, in-" laughter broke through again. "-places he is not used to having."

If it were possible, Natsuru's face got a little more red.

Sangu got a little bit more serious as she thought of something else. "I will have to think of something to tell other Kampfer, though. Hmm…" She looked up at Natsuru, still hiding a grin, "I assume you still don't want anyone else to be told that you have this little…problem?"

"Of course not!" he replied vehemently.

She nodded slowly. "Alright, well, we better get to class. I'll contact you when I've come up with a solution."

Natsuru made it back to homeroom just in time for class to start. Natsuru sat, miserable, through the entire day, and only paid attention when absolutely necessary. Very quickly lunch came.

Just as the students were dismissed for lunch, the student president walked into the classroom. The entire class froze, wondering what could be important enough that one of the school's idols would come in person to announce.

"Is Natsuru Senou-kun here?" she asked.

Every eye in the classroom turned to glare at Natsuru. There was even a low growl from the back of the class.

"Uh-um-yes, I'm here, why?" he responded.

Sangu smiled mischievously. "Well, I would like you to come eat lunch in my office. It's about what we talked about this morning."

There was hushed whispering. Why was _she _eating lunch with _him_? And in a very private place, too. Kanji whisled, impressed.

Natsuru was too miserable to notice any of that. He gathered his things and got up to meet Sangu.

When they got to her office, there was someone else already there. Hitomi was sitting patiently, waiting for an explanation for why this boy was invited to the unveiling of the new Zauber, and Kaede wasn't. The boy sat down at the chair next to her, and Sangu sat in her chair behind the desk.

Before Hitomi could speak, Sangu gestured to the boy. "Hitomi, I would like you to meet Natsuru Senou-kun." She said with a slight smile.

The boy—Natsuru looked at her for a second, Hitomi glareing back.

"What does he have to do with me?" she asked, annoyed. "and why isn't Kaede he—" she was silenced by Sangu.

"I think I'll let Natsuru answer that." She said looking pointedly at him.

He frowned, though color rose a bit in his face as if he were embarrassed. "You know I can't control it." He said, a bit defensively.

Sangu smiled michiviously. "Well then," she said, putting a finger to her wrist, "let me show you."

Her bracelet began to glow, but underneath the bandages on his arm, the boy's glowed too. Suddenly the glow became blinding.

"Let me present to you, Hitomi, the mysterious Blue Zauber!" She gestured to the seat that the boy sat in as the light faded and the figure sitting in it became visible. To Hitomi's surprise, now sitting in the chair was the girl with blue hair from the battle. It took her a few moments to understand what had happened. When she did, an expression of horror dawned on her face. But before she could say anything, the girl—Natsuru stood up in anger.

"What! You're showing me off like a circus freak show? I thought that you were going to hide it for me!" She yelled at Sangu.

Hitomi ignored the girl's outburst. "What are we going to tell Sakura-san?" She asked, agast.

Sangu smiled slyly. "Oh, well, I think I have a solution for that problem." She turned to Natsuru "But you, Natsuru-_chan _are not going to like it."

It was just after lunch. Natsuru _should _have been back in class. However, Sangu had told him to try to stay in female form, and try to get used to it before tomorrow.

Natsuru thought back to the meeting with Sangu and her plan.

"Well," Sangu had said, "there are plenty of rumors about this mysterious girl, right? Well, why don't we answer them?"

This had confused Natsuru. "Sure, but what does that mean?"

Sangu had just smiled. "We enroll a female 'Natsuru Senou' in the girls side."

Natsuru finally got it. "Hey, wait! No, no, no, no, no, no, NO! Me, go to the girls' side? That's—" he was cut off by Hitomi.

"—a brilliant idea! Yeah, we just get a few people who know to watch out for him on both sides and he can switch as necessary…" she trailed off, thoughtful.

Natsuru whirled on her. "I am _not _transferring to the girls side!"

Sangu just smiled, liking the idea more and more. "Yes, I think you are. We'll just have to inform a few people…and get some paperwork…I think it could work very well…" She turned her attention back to Natsuru. "I think you should just go back home for the rest of the day. Try to stay in Kampfer form to get more…comfortable in that body."

So that was how Natsuru ended up in female form in the shopping district. He felt that it might draw suspicion from his neighbors if a mysterious hot girl kept going into his house at bizarre times of the day.

Arai Saki had just made it back to her hometown after four years of college. She had nothing particular on her mind when she was wandering through the shopping district. Then she noticed the girl wearing the uniform of her old school, Seitetsu Gakuin. She paused to look at her for a second, the sight brining back old memories. Then, she noticed the Blue Kampfer bracelet on her wrist. Saki ran over to the girl.

"Hey! You're a Blue Kampfer from Seitetsu Gakuin! That's where I graduated from, and…" she held up her wrist to show the girl her own Blue Kampfer bracelet. "I'm Arai Saki."

Natsuru thought for a second, then decided that if he was going to be a girl student after tomorrow, he decided that he better get some practice.

"I'm Natsuru Senou." He said, trying to act cheerfull. Then his stomach rumbled, reminding him that after the whole meeting, he had never gotten around to having lunch.

This was not lost on Saki. "Well, if you haven't had lunch, I do know a good restaurant." She offered.

Minutes later, they were at a café who's customers were primarily young women, and staff was almost exclusively attractive young men. This, needless to say, made Natsuru more than a little bit uncomftorble, which he tried to hide as excitement about playing hooky and eating with a past graduate.

"So really, Senou-chan, why are you skipping school?" Saki asked, obviously a bit intrigued.

"Uh…well, this is my Kampfer form, and I just can't seem to transform back…" Natsuru explained.

Smiling reassuringly, Saki said, "That's a really common problem, no one will ridicule you for that."

Natsuru smiled shyly, trying to stick to the truth. "Well…my normal form is…not…as…interesting."

Saki looked at him oddly, but, realizing it was an uncomfortable topic, left it where as it was.

"So, if you have nothing to do, you're going to go shopping with me after lunch, right?" Saki asked.

Nausuru put on what he hoped was an apologetic smile. "um…no I have…a big report tomorrow…and I might be able to go to school, too, so…"

He was interrupted by their food coming. Saki waved his apologies off.

"It's alright, I can understand that. Well, let's eat!"

The rest of the meal was devoted to the topic of Seitetsu Gakuin. The conversation was light, and required little thought, giving a little hope to Natsuru that being a girl wouldn't be as difficult as he had expected.

As they were about to leave, Saki suddenly got serious.

"Senou-chan, if you _ever _need to talk, just give me a call." They had swapped phone numbers earlier. Then just as suddenly, Saki went back to playful. "And you owe me a shopping trip!"

When Natsuru got home, he realized that there were a few things that, if he was going to stay in female form for a while, he would have to get over with soon. Using the bathroom in the shopping district had not been a comfortable experience, but he knew that that would be the least of the "embarrassing things he didn't want to do as a girl" list.

He had gotten home late, the lunch running into the mid-afternoon, and the walk home taking about 45 minutes. Suddenly, it was time for supper.

He fixed himself a quick convenience store bento, and mentally prepared himself. After supper he went to get over with what he was dreading—taking a shower.

He had very quickly lathered himself down—without looking at his body—rinsed himself off, and was stepping out off the shower—avoiding looking in the mirror—when he realized his mistake. Him being a guy, he had no clean underclothes appropriate for his current body.

He rummaged through his closet, found a t-shirt and reflexively turned towards the mirror, forgetting that he would see a very hot, naked girl as apposed to what he was used to.

After a few seconds petrified with fascination, he noticed something was running down from his nose. He turned away from the mirror and realized with ashamed humor that he had gotten a bloody nose by catching sight of his own naked body in the mirror.

With chagrin, he put the shirt on, and found a pair of sweat pants and put them on without any underwear, women's or otherwise. He prayed that by morning he would be male again, at least for a short break before his first day of school on the girls' side.

The next morning he woke up to a banging on the front door. He quickly noted that yes, in fact he had gone back to male form in the night. He hurriedly changed into his uniform—boxers and all—and rushed downstairs to get the door. When he opened it, he was surprised to find Akane, in Kampfer form, on his doorstep.

"Whacha doin' as a guy? Didn't Sangu tell you to go the day in Kampfer form?" Akane asked.

"I can't control it, it just happened overnight." Natsuru protested. "Why are you here, anyway? School is in a while."

Akane grinned. "Well, that's a while for preparation and introduction. Everyone's waiting for you at the Prez's office."

"Everyone! What does that mean! I thought we weren't going to tell anyone!" Natsuru asked alarmed.

Akane smiled slyly. "Well, Natsuru, ya gonna have to see, ain't you? We got breakfast ready for you there." She turned to leave the front step and walk to the school, then turned to look back "You ready for your first day of school on the girls' side?"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

When Natsuru got into the office, he was surprised that it was not filled with people. In fact, there were only five.

The first two were expected; Hitomi and Sangu were sitting behind the desk watching the other two at the table. The other two were a bit of a surprise; the first was a boy who had black, bowl-cut hair and wore glasses-it was Nakamura Mamoru, the other Blue Kampfer who sat at Natsuru's table—and sitting next to him was a girl with lime green hair that hung down to her shoulders. She was wearing a White bracelet.

Sangu looked up as Akane and Natsuru opened the door. "Ah, well then, everyone's here." She turned to the desk and sat up very straight, looking professional. "I called this inter-team meeting due to a very important issue: the strange Blue Kampfer girl seen three days ago."

Mamoru looked strangely at Natsuru. "But Shizuku-san, Senou-kun isn't even a Kampfer…"

Sangu gave him one of her signature knowing smiles. "Really, well then, Senou-kun, please remove the bandages on your wrist.

Natsuru did so, slowly unveiling the Blue Kampfer bracelet on his wrist.

"But sill, how does he have anything to do with the blue-haired girl?" Mamoru asked puzzled.

Sangu just smiled, putting her finger on her own bracelet. When the glow from Natsuru's Kampfer arm band began to get blinding, she turned to the two who didn't already know.

"Nakamura Mamoru, Sasaki Amaterasu," she directed the second part at the girl with green hair, "meet this 'mysterious' Blue Kampfer," the light began to fade, and Natsuru's Kampfer form became visible, "Natsuru Senou."

The girl with green hair—Amaterasu—appeared unaffected. Mamoru, however, was staring at Natsuru with a mixture of awe and horror.

Natsuru turned on Sangu. "Did you really have to do it in front of him" he pointed at Mamoru "He's one of my friends, I thought we were going to find people completely unrealated to me."

Sangu merely nodded. "We _were _planning that, but we decided that it would be safer to have someone that would always be around you as your 'lookout'. That is also why we will be placing you in Akane's class."

"WHAT?" Natsuru whirled around to face Akane, who was smiling mockingly. "I don't want to be near her any more than I have to!"

Akane got more offended by this than he was expecting. "Hey, bitch, you think I like this any better than you do? I've got to baby-sit for you."

Hitomi interrupted Natsuru's reply. "We both understand you don't like it, but let us explain how this will work. Natsuru, you will come to school on either side as necessary, depending on what form you're in. If there is a battle and you are in male form, you will find an unoccupied area-with the help of Nakamura—and will transform there."

Sangu took up the explanation. "You do not need to hide your bracelet in either form, we are saying your male form is a very weak Gewehr that in the transformation becomes very intelligent, but does not change physically. This means the Blue team can say you only act as a tactical strategist. Your female form is a powerful Zauber that does not transform at all." She turned to look at Amaterasu. "Now, we brought you here because the whites need to know what is happening so they do not suspect the Blues or Reds of conspiring to something, because it will probably look like we're hiding something. We would have brought Sakura-san, but due to—" she glanced at Natsuru "—the circumstances, I think you can understand why we can't tell your captain."

Amaterasu nodded slowly.

Sangu straightened up. "Alright, I think that's all. You can go, you don't want to be late for class."

Hitomi, Amaterasu, and Mamoru left. Sangu and Akane turned towards Natsuru.

"Now, there are a few thing we need to go over." She said to Natsuru. "First, you are a new student, so you will be…watched closely for the first few days, but—" she stopped when Akane put a hand on her shoulder, smiling cruelly.

"Let's just let her—I mean him, find out about the situation on the girls' side for himself shall we?"

Sangu thought it over for a while, then smiled. Natsuru was beginning to get worried. "You're right, Akane," Sangu replied, then turned to Natsuru, still smiling wickedly. "Now, time for you and Akane to get to class."

That was how he ended up in room 2-4 standing in the front of the class as the teacher introduced her.

"This is Natsuru Senou." She said. "Please don't run off with her umbrella or stare at her like some rare specimen under a magnifying glass…" Natsuru was a bit put off by the half-assed intro. "Now we just have to find you a suitable seat." The teacher continued.

There was dead silence. All the girls were just staring at Natsuru. He was beginning to worry that he had transformed back without noticing when someone whispered. "So cool…"

They all moved at once, as if the whisper were a permission, staring at Natsuru obsessively, and screaming in delight. Natsuru was overwhelmed by their fascination with him. They were attacking him, grabbing at his clothes and limbs. The teacher seemed to be unworried about this, to the point of leaving the classroom.

Then someone ran into the room, crowding ahead of the rest and pushed them back from Natsuru. As he tried to recover, he recognized the girl that had walked in to defend him. It was Sakura Kaede.

"Alright…everyone, that's enough," she said cheerfully. "Natsuru-san just came back from sabbatical, you shouldn't pester her so much!"

Akane, back in her normal form came in behind her. "Ms. Senou is part of our class! I think everyone just wants to be her friend, so…" she hesitated, "for someone from another class to just come in here and say something like that…"

Kaede seemed unfazed by Akane's words. "I'm here as a favor to Shizuku-chan." She said. "She asked me to look after Natsuru!"

Natsuru was a bit puzzled by this. Why would Sangu have Kaede look after him when Akane and Mamoru were already assigned that job? Natsuru wasn't going to question it, though; he wasn't going to do anything that might remove himself from the beauty's presence.

Kaede turned to face Natsuru, still smiling cheerfully. "She asked me to show you around the campus." She said.

This really began to gnaw at Natsuru, he knew the campus, why would he need a tour? But to keep Kaede around, he said nothing.

Kaede dragged Natsuru out into the hallway cheerfully calling "C'mon, Natsuru, I'll show you around the girls' side!"

As the door to the classroom closed behind them, though she stopped, facing away from Natsuru.

"Umm…Ms. Sakura, about that 'looking after me'—" Natsuru was trying to understand what was going on, but was cut off by Kaede, who spoke without a hint of cheerfulness this time.

"Natsuru…I'm finally able to meet you. I've been searching for you all this time…" Kaede turned around to look at Natsuru, her eyes filled with emotion. "Searching and searching, but you were never there… this incredible feeling of loneliness, like I've never felt before…" she trailed off, and Natsuru started feeling guilty about the times on the bus when he stayed silent. If only he had talked to the girl he had loved so much…

Kaede continued. "But I heard from Shizuku-san that you were here, and…since we're together now…" Kaede hesitated, "Will you go out with me?"

Natsuru was shocked. The girl he loved was confessing to him, when he hadn't the courage to confess to her! She liked him! She….

Then Natsuru remembered that he was in his Kampfer form and stopped. If he was a girl at the moment, and Kaede confessed to him, that meant…he tried to avoid thinking about it. What could he do? He was trapped.

"Uhm…um…" he tried to figure out how to get out of it.

Sakura was insistant on an answer. "Well, what is your reply to my confession, Natsuru?" Then he noticed his bracelet was beginning to glow.

He looked around, then out of desperation pushed Kaede out of the way. "Sorry Sakura-san!" he yelled back to her as he tried to get to a place where he wouldn't be seen transforming back. Wait, no, he had to actually get out of the school; when he was a guy, there would be no way out of the girl's side without being spotted.

Finally he got to the exit and shoved past it, preparing himself for the blinding light that would come from his bracelet. After a few seconds, he realized that it wasn't coming. He straightened up, and immediately to shot rang form the tree next to him. He leapt back just in time, and saw standing in the tree, a masked figure in black formfitting cloths. A Black.

The Black raised his pistols again, and Natsuru raised his hands, hoping he could pull off the same thing he had done during the battle. Suddenly, the Black glanced behind him and leapt away, into the shadows.

Natsuru looked behind him. Running up to him was Akane, still in her human form.

She seemed oblivious to what had happened.

"W-what did S-sakura-san ask you?" She said, seeming a bit panicked. Natsuru frowned and ignored her question; he was trying not to think about it.

"There was a Black Kampfer here." He said.

Akane looked up, looking a little peeved that he had not answered her. "A Black?"

"Yeah, it got away, though. It looked like it was just going for me."

Akane, still unhappy about him ignoring her turned and began to walk away.

"Hey, wait! Where are you going?" Natsuru called.

Akane replied coolly, "Class has not ended just because left, Natsuru."

Natsuru's face reddened and he ran to catch up with her.

As he got into his seat, he looked around, noticing that the room was empty, save for him and Akane. Just outside, a large crowd was gathering at the classroom door.

He leaned in to whisper to Akane. "What's with that crowd?"

Akane turned away with a "humpf".

"Akane-chan, is that…"

Akane stood up suddenly, moving towards the door. As she passed Natsuru she stopped.

"Everyone is here to see you. You're the person of the times, Miss Senou."

She left the classroom.

As she left, two people came up to Natsuru.

"The class president and the treasurer? What are you doing here?" Natsuru exclaimed.

A voice came from just below her desk. "The girls' side hasn't been very fun lately…."

"What are you doing down there!" Natsuru almost jumped back. There was the student vice president lying on the ground, and apparently, sniffing Natsuru's ankles.

The class Vice president ignored her comment. "…so a new student showing up is a big deal." The blond haired girl started to stand up. "Especially since you're such a hottie!"

"Yes, but it'll be okay," the class president said. "Senou-chan is property of class 4, and as it's representatives, we three will protect you." Natsuru bristled a bit at the "property" part.

"For a price…" the treasurer added in a quieter tone. The class president waved it off.

"Just a little bit of your time to schedule as we like…"

It didn't seem too bad to Natsuru. "Okay…"

"Great!" The president said. "So, let's begin with the interview!"

"What!" Natsuru exclaimed, supprised. They ignored him and ushered in the first-year editor of the school newspaper.

She cut to the chase immediately. "So where do you live?" she asked in her manic, super-speed voice.

"I-bu-I think that's—personal-" Natsuru began.

"We'll come back to that then. Where did you go to school before this?"

"I—um—here—I guess—"

"Hmm, interesting. Are you in any kind of relationship?"

This made Natsuru stop. "Uh…well…I…" He suddenly thought of Kaede. His female form blushed easily, and color rose in his cheeks. "Well…"

The girl leaned in, suddenly very intent on the conversation. "I'll take that as a yes then, shall I?" she said slyly.

"No—I—but—"

"Time's up!" The class president yelled! Natsuru sighed with relief as the girl left.

"Now for the individual meetings!" the president said cheerfully, and opened the door to the classroom, letting in the eager crowd and crushing Natsuru's hope of escape.

Once school had ended, a tired Natsuru walked out the door, met Akane, and began walking back home. Akane following.

Natsuru turned back to glare at her. "Why are you following me?"

Akane (still in human form) replied shyly, "Well, the president told me to make sure nothing like…" her cheeks reddened in embarrassment "last time happens again."

Natsuru scowled and stalked off, heading home, then stopped suddenly, remembering the incident last night.

He turned to her, trying to figure out how to say this right. He cleared his throat and said, "Last night it…came to my attention that I had no…undergarments for this form…and I should go shopping but…having never looked for…bras or panties…I don't think it would be a good idea to go on my own…and you are supposed to help me, so…" he trailed off.

Akane's eye's seemed to light up a bit at that. "Alright, well then, we should probably get to the shopping district then."

About an hour later and they were at the "women's apparel" section of a department store in the shopping didstrict. Natsuru could not get over his irrational embarrassment; he was a girl in this form, why did it matter? But it seemed it did.

Akane however, seemed to not notice, and was talking about the pros and cons of various brands and types of bra. Natsuru was working very hard not to pay attention.

Suddenly he realized he recognized someone in the store. _Two _someones, to be exact: Sakura Kaede and Shizuku Sangu. Before Natsuru could react, they noticed him and turned toward him. Soon they were in front of him.

Kaede smiled cheerfully. "You're shopping for bras?" she asked, half interested, half out of courtesy.

Natsuru flushed, at a loss for word. What a messed up situation to be in. "Yeah, um, a lot of them." He said lamely.

Sangu smiled her mischievous smile. "I'm sure we could be persuaded to help you." Natsuru almost screamed at her: _You __know__ who I am, are you just __trying__ to make me miserable! _The gleam in Sangu's eyes told him that, yes, she was trying.

For the next hour he stood by and tried to ignore the three girls' debates and recommendations about what to buy. He snapped back into reality when one of them said: "Alright, time for you to try them on!"

"Yes, I think that would be a great idea." Sangu remarked, eyes still gleaming.

Natsuru tried to protest. "No—I don't think that's really necessary…"

Kaede responeded. "Of course it is! We aren't quite sure what your cup size is yet!"

So that was how Natusuru found himself walking into the women's changing room, the three girls in tow.

To his horror, as he opened the door to one of the changing rooms and walked in, _the girls came in with him! _He closed the door behind him and stood paralyzed staring at them.

"What are you waiting for? Strip down so we can try these on." Sangu said slyly.

Natsuru cursed her silently and began to wiggle out of his school uniform. By the time he had gotten his shirt off, the girls had started helping, and they undid the bra strap and took it off him, exposing his Kampfer form's beautifully shaped breasts. He was careful to keep his eyes off the floor length mirror in the room.

Akane bent down and picked up the first bra and between the three girls they got it on him and began forcefully but carefully forcing his body's breasts into the cup. The sensation felt disturbingly good, and Natsuru couldn't force back a small sigh of pleasure.

The girls stood back and admired their handiwork. There was a moment of silence, then Akane said quietly "I told you she'd never fit into a D cup." They began to remove it, and the process started all over again.

Half an hour later found the four walking out of the department store, a large bag in tow. It had been, Natsuru decided, the most disturbing thirty minutes of his life.

Kaede and Sangu turned away from them at the end of the shopping district, Sangu throwing a sly wink at Natsuru as they walked off.

Once he and Akane had reached his house, Akane walked off. As he walked inside, Natsuru's Kampfer bracelet glowed and he reverted back to his male form. If only it could have happened earlier.

He fixed himself a quick dinner and went straight to bed, hoping for respite from his awful day.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Once school had ended, a tired Natsuru walked out the door, met Akane, and began walking back home. Akane following.

Natsuru turned back to glare at her. "Why are you following me?"

Akane (still in human form) replied shyly, "Well, the president told me to make sure nothing like…" her cheeks reddened in embarrassment "last time happens again."

Natsuru scowled and stalked off, heading home, then stopped suddenly, remembering the incident last night.

He turned to her, trying to figure out how to say this right. He cleared his throat and said, "Last night it…came to my attention that I had no…undergarments for this form…and I should go shopping but…having never looked for…bras or panties…I don't think it would be a good idea to go on my own…and you are supposed to help me, so…" he trailed off.

Akane's eye's seemed to light up a bit at that. "Alright, well then, we should probably get to the shopping district then."

About an hour later and they were at the "women's apparel" section of a department store in the shopping didstrict. Natsuru could not get over his irrational embarrassment; he was a girl in this form, why did it matter? But it seemed it did.

Akane however, seemed to not notice, and was talking about the pros and cons of various brands and types of bra. Natsuru was working very hard not to pay attention.

Suddenly he realized he recognized someone in the store. _Two _someones, to be exact: Sakura Kaede and Shizuku Sangu. Before Natsuru could react, they noticed him and turned toward him. Soon they were in front of him.

Kaede smiled cheerfully. "You're shopping for bras?" she asked, half interested, half out of courtesy.

Natsuru flushed, at a loss for word. What a messed up situation to be in. "Yeah, um, a lot of them." He said lamely.

Sangu smiled her mischievous smile. "I'm sure we could be persuaded to help you." Natsuru almost screamed at her: _You __know__ who I am, are you just __trying__ to make me miserable! _The gleam in Sangu's eyes told him that, yes, she was trying.

For the next hour he stood by and tried to ignore the three girls' debates and recommendations about what to buy. He snapped back into reality when one of them said: "Alright, time for you to try them on!"

"Yes, I think that would be a great idea." Sangu remarked, eyes still gleaming.

Natsuru tried to protest. "No—I don't think that's really necessary…"

Kaede responeded. "Of course it is! We aren't quite sure what your cup size is yet!"

So that was how Natusuru found himself walking into the women's changing room, the three girls in tow.

To his horror, as he opened the door to one of the changing rooms and walked in, _the girls came in with him! _He closed the door behind him and stood paralyzed staring at them.

"What are you waiting for? Strip down so we can try these on." Sangu said slyly.

Natsuru cursed her silently and began to wiggle out of his school uniform. By the time he had gotten his shirt off, the girls had started helping, and they undid the bra strap and took it off him, exposing his Kampfer form's beautifully shaped breasts. He was careful to keep his eyes off the floor length mirror in the room.

Akane bent down and picked up the first bra and between the three girls they got it on him and began forcefully but carefully forcing his body's breasts into the cup. The sensation felt disturbingly good, and Natsuru couldn't force back a small sigh of pleasure.

The girls stood back and admired their handiwork. There was a moment of silence, then Akane said quietly "I told you she'd never fit into a D cup." They began to remove it, and the process started all over again.

Half an hour later found the four walking out of the department store, a large bag in tow. It had been, Natsuru decided, the most disturbing thirty minutes of his life.

Kaede and Sangu turned away from them at the end of the shopping district, Sangu throwing a sly wink at Natsuru as they walked off.

Once he and Akane had reached his house, Akane walked off. As he walked inside, Natsuru's Kampfer bracelet glowed and he reverted back to his male form. If only it could have happened earlier.

He fixed himself a quick dinner and went straight to bed, hoping for respite from his awful day.

The next day he was relieved to be able to go to school as a guy.

As he walked into the classroom, Kanji stepped in front of him and thrusted a newspaper into his hand. On the front page was a picture of Natsuru's female form and the Heading: Blue Haired Hottie Revealed!

Natsuru skimmed the article until he stumbled on this paragraph:

"And to all you young guys and girls hoping to win her heart, she isn't available. It was made quite apparent that she is currently involved with someone. However, upon questioning, she refused to give any details upon this mysterious person, which leads this editor to believe there must be something very strange about said relationship. Maybe those ladies hoping she might just swing their way could wind up a bit less disappointed than they expect…"

Natsuru threw the paper down in fury. She twisted the story. He hadn't said anything, but…

Suddenly Natsuru remembered where he was and looked to see everyone in the class giving him an odd look. He put his head down and walked to his seat, extremely self-conscious.

At lunch he sat down at his normal table, and partway through a conversation, Kanji happened to look at his bracelet. He jumped up in surprise.

"You're a Kampfer?"

Natsuru looked up, supprised. "Yeah, why."

"When did that happen? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Oh, well…" Natsuru struggled to remember what his cover story. "Well, a few days ago…and, well, I'm really weak as a Kampfer, so I was kind of embarassed…"

Kanji stood up. "And a blue? I bet you told Shizuku-san, but not me…" A sudden light came to his eyes. "…which would explain why she came into the classroom to see you earlier! It wasn't because of some secret affair!" with that, Kanji's conversation went back to girls. Nakamura Mamoru, however, smiled encouragingly.

At the end of the day he was escorted home again, this time by Mamoru. The walk was both without incident or conversation.

The next morning, though, Natusru awoke to find himself in his female form again. Grumbling at his bad luck and avoiding looking at his body, he hurriedly changed into his uniform, ate a quick breakfast, and walked to school, hoping that by avoiding a bus, people wouldn't notice him.

He was sorely mistaken. As he walked through the girls entrance, someone recognized him and yelled "Senou-san!" and everyone turned to look at him. There was a moment of quiet as everyone stared at him, then the girls were dashing at him, screaming with joy. One yelled, "I want to touch her!"

He was about to turn and run when a girl stood in their path, arms out.

"Stop!" Sakura yelled. "What are you doing?" Her voice got a bit sorrowful "She's already seeing someone… she's not…" now she was beginning to sound a bit pitiful, and practically whispered the last word, "…yuri."

The crowd was shocked for a second. They let out a collective sigh of disappointment, and wandered off.

Sakura looked at Natsuru for a moment, tears welling up, then ran off.

Natusru almost reached out to her, feeling a bought of empathy. Then he remembered who he was an hardened his heart.

On the way to class he 'ran into' Sangu, who was obviously trying to subtly find him.

"Did you see Sakura-san?" she asked in a low voice.

This puzzled Natsuru for a moment. "Why? What do you know about it?" his thoughts turned to her distress.

Sangu grinned in her signature slyness. "Well, I merely told her you were _involved _with a boy that had a…similar name to yours."

Natsuru took a moment to work that out, then as he understood what she meant, turned to try and yell at her, but she had escaped down the hall.

Natsuru was furious, a foul mood gripping him for the rest of the day. As he walked out to leave, though, his bracelet glowed. He looked to Akane, who ran up to him, then grabbed his arm and lead him out of the building and behind some bushes, where he safely transformed out of anyone's sight.

As he got up to head back home, now in his male form, Kanji walked outside. Kanji gave him an angry glare before coming up to him.

"So it wasn't Shizuku-san you were seeing in secret, it was Senou-san."

Natsuru held his hands up defensively. "Look. It just kind of happened…" Natusur was too tired to think up an alibi, "I just didn't have time to tell you…" he trailed off lamely.

Kanji frowned and stalked off, still unhappy. Natsuru was too tired to care. If only he could just go back to before this.

He and Akane walked back home silently, and after another quick supper, he went straight to bed.

For two weeks, Natsuru's world seemed to settle back into a routine, albeit a very odd one. Eventually, he would have gotten used to it. However, things changed the morning three weeks before the cultural festival…


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

He woke up as a girl that morning and went to his class on the girls' side. He was just a bit late, but it was nothing unusual. When he got to the classroom, though, he stopped.

On the board were the words: "Cultural festival representatives: Natsuru Senou and Akane Mishima" Before anyone could stop him, he ran out of the doors and quickly transformed. He had been working on control, but this was the first time he had been able to do it under stress. He felt a sickening feeling that he knew what he was going to find.

He ran back inside, this time in the boys' door. He ran back up the stairs and into his boys' side classroom. Sure enough, up on the blackboard was the exact same thing: "Cultural festival representatives: Natsuru Senou and Higashida Kanji" He groaned and slumped over. Then, remembering where he was, he muttered something about "Not feeling well…going home…bye…".

He sullenly walked back outside and transformed back into his female form. He then walked back to his girls' side classroom, cursing his luck the entire way. When he walked in, the teacher chased him out yelling at him that the first Cultural Festival council meeting was "RIGHT NOW" at the student president's office.

A minute after that, he was at Sangu's office. He walked in the middle of a heated debate, but all conversation stopped when he came in. Sangu looked up.

"Well, Natusuru-_chan_," (she stressed the suffix with a smile) "when neither you nor the male Natsuru came, I had begun to think you and him might have…skipped school together." She raised her eyebrows in a suggestive way, the now familiar gleam in her eye. Natsuru sighed in exasperation as the rest of the group's expressions changed from moderately interested to, in the case of some to the boys, outrage. Hitomi was laughing. Even Akane was trying to hide a shy giggle.

He sat down, attempting to regain some of his lost dignity.

Sangu brought him into the conversation. "We are currently trying to decide what the school wide event will be. It was general consensus that we should do a beauty pageant. The conflict arises from the matter of entry. One option proposed was popular vote. Students get five votes. The five most popular choices will participate. You got here just in time for the vote, Natusru-san. All in favor say aye." The room erupted in cheers and "aye's, Natsuru among them. Sangu motioned them to quiet. "All opposed?" there were a few whoops, but the choice was obvious. Natsuru was glad. This saved him from doing anything. No one ever noticed him.

On his way out though, a girl came up to him.

"What will your costume be for the pageant?"

Natsuru stopped. "Why would I be in the pageant?"

The girl looked at him strangely. "You're the most popular girl in the school. I'm going to vote for you. I bet everyone in that room will, and every other student."

Natsuru realized his mistake. As a guy maybe no one noticed him, but as a girl he couldn't go unnoticed. He groaned.

"Don't know yet." He replied as he left.

When he got back home he was hopeless. He really better start coming up with something to wear. He had gotten 174 comments assuring him that they had voted for him. And that everyone else they knew had. And that they were tying to convince everyone they saw that they should vote for him too.

He was so tired that he skipped supper and went straight to bed, and so completely missed the letter for him with a return address of "42683, Candace archeological dig, Peru"

The next few weeks passed in a blur. On the boys' side, he organized a simple break room. That would leave everyone else (and most importantly him) to do something else.

The girls' side was a bit more difficult. As Natsuru had come to find out, boys in general were more apathetic. Girls were by far more involved. And they weren't about to let such a unique experience get away with just a _break room_. The class decided to do a themed teashop. And of course, who did they nominate as their lead waitress? That's right, him. So not only did he have to find his own costume, he had to find maid costumes for half the girls in the class.

The weekend before the cultural festival found him and Akane at the local costume shop. They had already purchased six maid costumes, and Natsuru was looking around for the most unrevealing, plain costume he could find. After finding a dark, simple looking uniform, he went back to Akane. Though he was in Kampfer form, she wasn't. She had an extra bag. He looked questioningly at it. She blushed but remained silent. He shrugged and paid for the costumes.

Outside he was heading back when someone yelled.

"Natsuru!"

He turned around, not recognizing the voice. Running up behind him was a woman, about 6 years older than him, with green hair and unsettlingly pale blue eyes. He still didn't recognize her.

"It's Arai Saki, remember?" she yelled, "We had lunch together a few weeks ago!"

Now Natsuru remembered. He whispered a quick explanation to Akane, then Saki was right in front of her. She seemed a bit more nervous then when he last saw her.

"Hey, Saki-chan!" he tried to act painfully cheerful. "This is one of my friends, Akane-chan." His mouth already hurt from smiling so much "She's also a Kampfer at Seitetsu Gakuin."

Saki glanced around. "Would you guys like to have lunch with me?"

A few minutes later, they found themselves at the same restaurant Saki had taken him to last time.

"Why is your hair green?" Natsuru asked.

She looked puzzled for a moment, then got it. "Oh, you never saw my Kampfer form, did you? Well, this is it. See," here she lowered her voice and hunched down a bit "my captain told me that _she_ was being told from her captain that there have been some strange Black movements recently. In fact," she leaned in really close, "you two are free next Saturday, right?"

Both Akane and Natsuru nodded, a bit intrigued.

"Well," Saki continued, "see, she told me to get as many Kampfer together, Blues _and_ Reds. We…well, just wait until then. I think she'll explain it." Upon seeing their worried expressions, she leaned back and smiled, "Don't worry, though, I was just trying to explain why I was on guard and in Kampfer form."

About two hours later—Natsuru still couldn't figure out why girls took so long to eat meals—they parted. Saki called to them as they left.

"Remember, call me if you ever need anything!"

It was the night of the beauty pageant. Higashida Kanji had been anticipating this since the school wide event was announced. The three most popular girls in the school in possibly skimpy clothing and performing onstage, with two other probably very hot girls with them.

He was up in the booth as a judge with the rest of the hottie research club. He was very much looking forward to seeing the show.

The announcer came out.

"Good evening!" she said. "Are you ready for this?" The crowd cheered in response. "Well, then let's begin!"

The curtains behind her opened revealing a dark set. Suddenly a spotlight came down on a couple—the female Natsuru Senou in a dark military dress uniform with Sakura Kaede in a bridal veil and dress in her arms. The crowd cheered wildly as the announcer introduced them "Natsuru Senou the "new girl", we all know her, the mysterious blue haired Kampfer, playing the part of the valiant prince. And of course, the radiant Sakura Kaede, playing the part of his beautiful bride-to-be!"

Another stage light turned on, this time illuminating a red-haired girl in black fishnet tights and a black corset. The crowd "oohed".

The announcer explained. "Minagawa Hitomi, the infamous captain of the Red Kampfers, playing the vampiress bent on ruining their wedding." She looked around. "Well, all the characters we need are here, let's start the action!"

Hitomi launched into action, lunging at Natsuru, nails barred. Natsuru set Kaede down and drew with a slightly shaking hand a prop sword. A quick battle ensued, giving both girls a chance to lean in and display their lithe, shapely bodies. The crowd was riveted watching them trade mock blows. Kanji tried to avoid noticing the curves of Natsuru's body, an effort helped by her very concealing costume. He was unhappy with the male Natsuru for not telling him, but it was still bad form to have those kinds of fantasies about your best friend's girlfriend.

After a quick stab, Hitomi lay unmoving on the ground. Natsuru walked to Kaede and stooped to her level. Kaede leaned in and put her arms around the other girl. Then, apparently out of script, she brought her hands around and began undoing the buttons of Natsuru's shirt. The crowd gasped, even more involved now that it was getting a bit dirty.

Natsuru appeared too surprised to do anything at first, and Kaede managed to undo all the buttons. Finally Natsuru jumped back, but Kaede swooned onto her. Natsuru hadn't made a very good move, as now her shirt was hanging limply by her shoulders, her lace bra the only thing between the crowd and bare skin.

The crowd was pushing the edges of going wild, but was perfectly silent. No one wanted to interrupt this. The announcer was franticly whispering to a member of the stage crew. The judges had set down their pencils, all thought of writing notes gone.

Sakura slid the shirt off Natsuru's shoulders, and began to reach around her to the bra straps. Suddenly a girl jumped out from back-stage. She had short brown hair, and wore tight jean shorts with just a torn strip of fabric around her breasts passing for a shirt. On her head was a cowboy hat. The announcer seemed just as surprised as the audience at her arrival.

"Get your hands off her, bitch!" the newcomer yelled.

The announcer fumbled with the microphone. "Akane Mishima, playing the part of the wild-girl honeymoon crasher that—" she was interrupted by the sound of gunshots as Akane made use of her Kampfer form's weapons.

The crowd screamed and everyone ducked under their chairs.

Suddenly from the other side of the stage leapt a figure clad in long, billowing robes carrying a familiar pair of knives attached at the end by a long chain.

"And—um—" The announcer went on, at this point obviously adlibbing it. "Shizuku Sangu, the student president as…um…the mage of peace, come to resolve the conflict!" she said the last part triumphantly; obviously proud she managed to come up with it.

Sangu tossed one of her knives behind the girls on the stage, then, while they were trying figure out why she missed, quickly snapped it back, smashing the hand guard against the back of each of their heads in turn. The four girls collapsed on the stage, to the general amazement of the audience.

She strode over to Natsuru who was laying topless on the floor, and pulled off her own robes, revealing a skin-tight leather suit, that, though it seemed to cover all her skin, seemed to reveal quite a bit of her body. The crowd gaped. She drew the robe over Natsuru, giving her more protection than just her bra. Then, with the superhuman strength given to Kampfers, threw the four girls over her shoulders and carried them off the stage. The lights went off.

Kanji sat back. What an intense performance! Well, he certainly had a lot to say about each of the girls. He found his pencil and began scribbling in his judges' notes.

Natsuru woke up suddenly and it took a moment to remember what had happened. Akane going into Kampfer form at the last minute—he hadn't even known she was in the pageant! (he guessed that explained the extra costume she had bought) —and shooting the place up. Senou knocking them all out with a single precise flick of her wrist. Kaede-san—his face reddened remembering it—slowly undoing the buttons of his shirt with those pleading eyes…

He sat up suddenly. Where was he? He looked around. It appeared to be Sangu's office. But why? And how had he gotten back into his school uniform?

Sangu stepped into his line of vision. She was wearing her customary grin.

"The others woke up before you and left already. Are you going to thank me for getting clothes on you?" she asked, smiling at something.

Natsuru looked around. In the corner was a pile of clothes. The costume top, the costume body, and the lace bra and panties he had worn. But wait…that meant….

He leaped up. After a quick mental check he was in female form, and (he usually kept his mind away from thoughts of those areas) he found he was currently wearing underwear, so…

"How do you plan to repay me?" Sangu asked pointedly.

"Repay you? For stripping me down and—and—" He broke off, unable to continue.

Sangu ignored him. "Well, I think I know how you could repay me…I mean, of course you want to; I could…slip up and tell someone about your problem…" she gave him a look.

He grumbled in agreement.

He squeezed, putting real force into it as he leaned his weight into her. She moaned loudly with pleasure. He kneaded his hands, like working with dough. She squirmed appreciatively in response.

He can't believe he had agreed to give her a shoulder massage. But she really did need one; she was very tense. And it gave him time to try to come to terms with what had happened on the stage.

"Sangu, did you here that there was a meeting of Blue and Red Kampfers this Saturday?"

She seemed intrigued, so he gave her the date and address.

"Is there any reason why?" she asked.

Natsuru gazed out the window. "Well, I think the Blacks are acting weird or something."

The room was silent for a moment as he waited for her response. He looked down at her.

While he had looked away, she had turned towards him. Now what he was squeezing was definitely not her shoulders.

He threw his hands back quickly, and she leaned in at him.

She spoke in a low voice. "You are very forward, Natsuru Senou."

Then she did the last thing he would ever expect her to do. She leaned forward until their lips met.

There was a moment of passionate contact, and then Sangu pulled away. Natsuru reeled back then slowly stumbled out of the room. He heard Sangu call back to him,

"Next time, Natsuru-_chan_, come in your male form!" and he could just imagine the sly grin and mocking gleam in her eye.

Unbeknownst to Natsuru, right at that moment a girl had just given up on him being in his house, and left his yard, seething at what he hadn't told her. She had waited six years to get to him, and she was left with this? She clenched her hands into fists. She would get Natsuru Senou some time. For his sake she hoped it was later rather than sooner.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Natsuru woke up still female. Not that it would have mattered. He was the main attraction on the girls' side, after all. He got up and changed wearily.

When he walked into room 2-4, the first thing he noticed was a brightly colored tent. The girls were crowded around the teacher's desk, 'ooh'-ing and 'aah'-ing at something. One of them looked up and noticed him.

"Natsuru-chan is here!" She exclaimed excitedly.

The rest of the girls turned to look, and all screamed at once. They were yelling something about "change" and "costume". Someone pushed something at him. A bag of things actually.

The first Natsuru recognized was a frilly, lacy pair of panties. The rest were more difficult to disconcern, but when he did, he was horrified.

He had originally bought a basic maid outfit. He had tried hard to find one that was completely covering. Nothing but his ankles and face would be visible. Even his hands were covered by white gloves. This wasn't that costume. The other girls of class 2-4 had made some major adjustments. For one, it should have been a single piece, a body length dress.

The girls pushed him into the little tent, which was obviously to serve as a dressing room. From outside, they called a few instructions.

"Change your underwear. The one we gave you is much more effective!"

Natsuru stripped down, attempting to avoid looking at his body. It would have been much more helpful to his self-esteem if the girls didn't keep peeking in at him, especially when he was completely naked. He heard occasional impressed "ooooh!"s. He tried not to think about what they meant by that. He did talk to one of theme once. When he was putting on his top, he realized they had not provided him with any bra. When he asked why, they responded they told him that he wouldn't need one. He found it incredibly awkward to rest all the weight of his breasts in the strip of fabric that was supposed to be his 'shirt', all the while trying not to think about how impressive the weight of his breasts was.

When he walked out of the changing room, he was embarrassed. His privacy had been completely violated, just by someone looking at his costume. It definitely was not the same one he had bought.

There was a black strip around his chest with frilly white lace at the edges. The top didn't hide anything about his breasts. Around his waist was a black skirt with the same lace edges. It was at most a foot from his thin waist to the hem. He understood now why they had insisted on a more thematic pair of panties; they were almost visible when he stood up straight, let alone when, god forbid, he made the deep bow to the customers. Over both of these was a white apron. On most people it would be concealing, but it was tied at the thinnest point of his stomach and showed off all his generous curves. On his feet were a pair of dainty slippers with dark, thigh length stockings and garters, held by a garter belt. The girls stuck to the pure white gloves, but with such a scant rest of the outfit, they looked somehow even more dirty. On his head, as if attempting to redeem a little bit of innocence, was a cute frilly bonnet.

There were flashes from some of the girls' phones. There were plenty of 'ooohh's, and a few cheers. He even got a round of applause. He overheard the class president and treasurer casually considering something.

"With that costume, both boys and girls will want to stalk her!"

"Do you think we could charge extra for stalking?"

He tried to cover himself to regain a bit of decency. He wasn't terribly successful.

A few hours later he had gotten a little bit more used to the uniform. He still had to fight the urge to run out of the room when boys (and occasionally girls) ogled at him—an experience that in itself felt odd. He was beginning to empathize with the girls he had previously harbored hard feelings for that made jokes that ended in the puchline "boys are such pigs."

That said, he gradually became more, if never comfortable, at least familiar with his job. He greeted customers as they were let in, and led them to their seat. Occasionally he would act as a table's server. No matter what he was doing, when he left a customer's presence, or entered it, he had to bow deeply. Nearly everyone in the room would turn to watch then, as he showed all of them the lacy, frilly panties he had been given.

As soon as he thought this, things got much more awkward. Three girls came. One was Hitomi. The next was Sangu. The last was Kaede. The girl working the door told Natsuru that they had reserved a spot at the 'VIP table'—the changing tent converted into a luxury box. The VIP table came with an added bonus: Natsuru Senou would be your server.

He tried to ignore Kaede running her eyes up and down his body, and Hitomi and Sangu attempting to hold back snickers. He led them into the tent.

"Is there anything else?" He asked.

Hitomi let a smile creep across her face. "So you are our servant until our meal is over, right?"

Natsuru got a bad feeling about where this was going. Unfortunately, he had to maintain character. "Yes, mistress."

"What," Hitomi said slyly. "if we asked you to take off your costume…?"

"Well," Natsuru said after a while. He needed to stay in character so as not to be attacked by the rest of the class, but… "I am obliged to do whatever you say, mistress." He said carefully.

Hitomi gave a sideways glance to Kaede. Sakura blushed and shook her head, as if denying that this was something she would want. There was a moment of silence. Then Kaede spoke shyly.

"So…if I asked you to give me a kiss…"

Natsuru was struck dumb. It was a dream for Sakura to be asking him to kiss her, but not like this. But what was he to do?

"I…I would have to…obay…mistress."

Closed her eyes and began to lean in when Natsuru's bracelet began to shine brightly. He looked around panicked. Could he ever be in a worse situation? He thought he had mastered his transformation. What should he do? Hitomi was biting her lip to hold back laughter. He looked to Sangu, expecting to see an amused smile. To his surprise, she actually looked concerned. She nodded a little to the exit. Natsuru took this as assurance that she would cover for him and ran out the tent, the classroom, and the building, eventually finding a part of the grounds that wasn't covered in people there for the cultural festival.

He stood there waiting for the transformation. It didn't happen. He looked around, confused. Then he noticed the girl a few meters to his right. She had short, blond hair and green eyes. She was wearing a the school uniform, but as though the color was inverted. She held a small submachine gun. She also had a Red bracelet on her wrist. The gun was pointed at Natsuru.

Natsuru backed away slowly. The girl spoke.

"You're the female Natsuru Senou?"

Natsuru was a bit puzzled at that, gut responded. "Yes, why?"

"You are going out with the male Natsuru, aren't you?"

Now Natsuru was really confused, but he stuck to his story. "Yes—"

RAPTARATATATATATATATATATAT!

Natsuru leapt out of the way of the barrage of bullets flew past him.

"What the heck?" Why did you—"

He leapt away again as the space he once occupied was filled with flying metal.

He raised his hands, preparing to fire. He had been taking a few Kampfer combat lessons and hoped he could fight with this girl.

FWOOM!

The air in a line in front of Natsuru screamed with the heat of his fireball. The mysterious Red Kampfer did a nimble handspring away. There was a quick retort of gunfire and Natsuru leaned way back, avoiding the shots in a move reminiscent to the movie _Matrix_.

For a moment they stood there, staring each other down. Then Natsuru tried to work out what was happening.

"What does who I am and who I'm dating have to do with trying to kill me!"

"Pff, I can't kill you. We're Kampfers, we won't die from combat. Not that I wouldn't necessarily want to." She began to raise her gun again.

"Wait, wait!" Natsuru interrupted, "but why do you care what my name is and who I date?"

The girl frowned. "You're not the only girl that likes Natsuru, you know."

She raised her gun again.

BLAMBLAMBLAM!

"I was friends with him for eight years!" the girl shouted, continuing as Natsuru jumped out of the way of her shots, "And you think you can come in and _take my place_?"

Natsuru was puzzled. She _did _look familiar, but he still couldn't place it. Who had he known for eight years?

The girl was still talking as she fired at Natsuru and Natsuru danced away. "Even if it's not me, how long have you known him? Is it really fair? Other girls like him too!"

Natsuru was still trying to place her. Eight years… a girl he had known for eight years. Who could it be? Then he realized that maybe he was thinking wrong. Not someone he met eight years ago, but could she be someone he had known from the time of his birth to the age of eight. That would be odd…but it did fit one person…

He stopped. When did Mikoto Kondo get back?

Something struck his shoulder. He was thrown across to the ground. There was blood coming from his shoulder he had been shot. By _Mikoto_.

She was standing over him (giving him a clear view of her black panties) and pointing her gun at his face.

"Mikoto? Mikoto Kondo?"

She looked confused.

"How do you know my name? Does Natsuru talk about me?" she seemed a bit comforted at that thought.

He looked around, saw no witnesses, prayed he could change back, and touched his bracelet.

"Hey, wait, what are you doing?" Mikoto asked as his bracelet began to shine, "Do you want me to shoot your normal form?"

A wind seemed to blow up Natsuru's skirt and, somehow down his stockings, blowing them outward and connecting them into a pair of black slacks. His apron sank back into his 'shirt' and became a white dress shirt. His 'shirt' lengthened and wrapped around his new dress shirt to become a tux. His bonnet slid around to become a bowtie.

When the transformation was done, he was back in male form, wearing a simple butler costume.

Mikoto looked at him, uncomprehending.

"Y-you—but—where—Natsuru?" she stammered out.

Natsuru rubbed his shoulder. The transformation had healed the wound, but it still seemed to hurt.

Mikoto was looking at him in horror.

"Mikoto." he said in what he hoped was a comforting tone, but he suspected sounded incredibly embarrassed, "there _is_ no female Natsuru Senou. That's my Kampfer form." He held up his bracelet. "My transformation changes…well…a lot about me. We…uh…we needed…we needed a cover…sto—why are you laughing?" Mikoto was giggling hysterically. "What? What's funny about that?"

Through fits of laughter, Mikoto responded, "Well—giggle—when I transform—snicker—I'm blond, which—giggle—I thought was pretty demeaning, but—you have to deal with—haha—changing to the opposite gender!"

Natsuru was a bit indignant.

He took a few moments to explain to her what had happened to him in the last couple weeks, then stepped back and touched his bracelet and transformed. He didn't want the girls of class 2-4 to kill him so he figured he better get back.

He left Mikoto in the cultural festival, promising that yes, he would be at his house tonight.

When he walked into 2-4, three girls were leaving. As they passed, Sangu stopped them.

"Wait, Natsuru," She had that gleam in her eye again. Natsuru's stomach sank. "Since you left Kaede-san so rudely…" she glanced at Sakura, who blushed, "…don't you think you owe her?"

Natsuru really, really wanted to attack her. Unfortunately, the entire shop was watching. He gritted his teeth.

"Yes, mistress."

Sangu looked to Sakura. "Well she is in debt to _you_, how would _you _have her pay you back?"

Sangu looked down shyly. "Well…maybe…you could…spend the night this weekend…"

Natsuru stepped back. Spending the night with Sakura-san? He threw an angry glance at Sangu. "Yes, mistress." He replied with a bow. Sangu smilled innocently. Hitomi was holding still holding back laughter. Kaede's radient smile seemed to make up for all of it.

When they had left, he let out a small sigh. He was going to have a busy weekend.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Natsuru looked around. Through random chance, every time he had been to the shopping district over the weekend had always started wit his male form. During the week, he would wear his school uniform, and if he switched while he was there on weekends, it didn't matter what he wore, as his outfit changed with him.

But everything changed when he came in female form.

"Hold still!" Mikoto said as she pinned a shirt and skirt against him, then tossed it violently across the room and picked up another outfit from Natsuru's drawers.

Mikoto and Akane had both come over, and after he had introduced them, they had become fast friends, if still a little suspicious of each other's motives. Natsuru had mentioned the Kampfer meeting that afternoon to both of them, and they insisted they pick out an outfit. After seeing what that entailed, he became very glad that the school enforced a dress code.

After fifteen different combinations, they finally agreed upon one and let him go, them following closely behind.

It took a while to get downtown, but when he did Sangu and Hitomi were leaning against the fountain, just as promised. They walked up to them.

"Come on, let's go. I've already had four guys hit on me, and if we stick around, we'll just attract more." Sangu said.

Natsuru readily followed her. It would be really awkward to have a guy hit on him.

As they reached the restaurant they were scheduled to meet at, Sangu turned to him.

"Natsuru, I haven't told anyone here about your…problem. Don't mention it, and don't act suspicious; recent theories suggest there might somehow be traitors or spys, and we don't want anyone getting the wrong idea."

Natsuru was curious. "Spys? How? We all have colored bracelets that anyone could see. How could someone disguise themselves?"

Sangu was quiet. Mikoto seemed to be considering it. "Well there is one team that doesn't have visible bracelets-"

"Exactly." Sangu cut her off, and without further ado strode into the building.

Red and Blue teams had apparently rented out the entire restaurant they were in, because the only customers were Kampfers. A few of the Blues nodded greetings to Sangu, apparently recognizing her, as she regularly attended meetings, being the team Captain of the school. Others—mostly Red boys—oggled at Sangu and Natsuru. Sangu occasionally threw them tantalizing winks. Natsuru squirmed uncomfortably.

They took seats and ordered. Looking around, Natsuru noticed that their table was one of the few that had both Red and Blue Kampfer at it. Most were sorted out to color, only Blue or only Red.

Just then, Arai Saki stood appeared. She stood up at the front of the room. Soon, everyone grew quiet. After looking cautiously around, as if worried they were being observed, Saki began to speak.

"Hi guys!" she said cheerfully. Her hair was back to its usual brown color. "We just called this meeting to bring to _everyone's_ attention, that something strange is going on." The assembled Kampfers looked quizzically at her. She explained, "I've noticed that the number of Black strikes have gone down. In fact, it is very odd, except for the strangely out of place attack of Miss Sakura Kaede at Seitetsu Gakuin High School a few weeks ago, there have been _no _Kampfer attacks in this entire town for a month." This was astounding to the audience. Even Natsuru, who had only been a Kampfer for a short amount of time, knew that Black raids on Whites occurred almost every battle. It was why he never questioned that a Black had attacked Kaede-san that first day. But now…

Saki continued. "Not only that, but according to _my _Captain, the trends _worldwide _have been showing that Black strikes are decreasing. I, for one, consider this just a little bit odd, so wanted to make sure you were all wary. Also, I'm setting up a secure website that I wanted you all to know about. Through the site we can arrange some coordinated—" she looked pointedly at a table of Reds "—attempts to uncover what their motives are. Frankly, Blacks have been giving Kampfer a bad name for a while, and anything we can do to bring a stop to it I think is a good idea."

Akane tentatively raised her hand. Saki noticed it and asked her what se wanted.

"Why are there no Whites here?" People began muttering amongst themselves, agreeing with this. And now that Natsuru came to think of it, it was a good question. Why _were _there no Whites here?"

Saki's expression hardened. "My Captain told me something recently. She told me this story. Apparently, down in South Africa, there was a large Proxy Battle recently. This battle was because the Black HQ had been discovered—the first one so far—and the Whites, who had recently lost their Captain, were attempting to denaturalize the Blacks." Natsuru had to stop for a moment to get used to the Kampfer slang. Denaturalize was the term for injuring someone so badly that the Kampfer lost their abilities.

Saki was still talking. "After the battle, which, I might add, was a success," there was a quick round of applause, "a body was found. Not a denaturalized one, a dead one. On the body was a Kampfer bracelet that was half White. The other half wasn't visible, it just disappeared after the White ended. At first the Whites thought the Blacks had actually killed one of their comrades and shattered their bracelet, but the soon found out that the bracelet was actually completely invisible, but someone, in an attempt to disguise themselves, had painted it white. The method was foolish, of course, as the bracelet's material was actively rejecting the paint and after a half an hour the bracelet was completely invisible. The Kampfer had apparently been killed by allies to keep experimental research a secret." The crowd was aghast. The Proxy War was supposed to be _safe_. No casualties. And defiantly no killing your test subjects to keep the experiment secret.

"So now," Saki said, "I'm not sure how far the Blacks have gotten in this. It may have been only that group, but maybe not. I can't risk it. However, as the Blacks apparently see no significance in the Reds and Blues, I think I can risk divulging it to you."

The room was silent. Why would the Blacks be doing this? What was their goai? Or were they just insane?

Suddenly Saki spoke again, this time in a more upbeat tone. "Since I want to end this meeting on a happy note, I'll pay for your meals with the Kampfer funds. I should have enough extra to cover you all." There was a resounding cheer, and then the waiters came.

On the way out Natsuru talked to Saki.

"You're the Captain of this area? Why didn't you say?"

Saki seemed a bit uncomfortable. "I…I don't like to tell people that, because we could be overheard. If the Blacks _did _want to cause chaos, who better to assult than me?"

Natsuru didn't quite believe this. The regional Captain was just not important enough for that. Nevertheless, he left without comment.

Natsuru had only a few hours to rest. Akane and Mikoto stuck around to help him pack for his sleepover with Sakura.

Akane was now in her Kampfer form. "I better go with you, to keep that bitch in line."

Natsuru was astonished and tried to protest, but Mikoto stopped him. "You know, I think that's a good idea. Maybe we _both _should go with her."

Natsuru threw her an annoyed glance, partly for encouraging Akane, and partly for referring to him with a female pronoun. Even though he _was_ a girl at the moment, they didn't need to rub it in.

A few hours later, Natsuru was at the address Kaede had given her. It was a large building, very expensive looking and impressive. Natsuru hadn't realized how wealthy Kaede's parents were.

"Come on!" Mikoto called to him from the doorstep.

He ran up the meet them and got there just as Sakura opened the door.

"Hi Akane! Hi Mikoto! Hi Natsuru!" She said cheerfully.

"Hello Kaede-san!' Natsuru said, feeling a bit awkward. "You don't mind that I brought Akane and Mikoto-chan, do you?"

He expected Sakura to be a bit put off by this but she seemed all the more cheerful. "It's kind of become a slumber party. I invited Sangu and Hitomi."

Natsuru almost gagged. The only thing that could have made this situation worse was this. Now he was glad he let Akane and Mikoto. They might be able to make the night enjoyable. At least they wouldn't sit and giggle like Sangu was sure to do.

Sakura led them through the house, explaining that her parents were very wealthy but never around, leaving her almost the entire house to herself. Soon they got to a room filled with couches and a huge flat TV. Sitting on one of the couches were Sangu and Hitomi, apparently eagerly awaiting their arrival.

With that, the party commenced. They talked, laughed, and watched silly movies. Over time, Natsuru began to settle into his position, even being able to seem a bit engaged in the discussions about boys, though not without suffering amused glances from everybody but Sakura.

At about eleven o'clock at night, they were suffering one of the sporadic periods with nothing to do. All of the sudden, Sakura leapt up, struck with a sudden idea. She ran to the near by kitchen and came back with a box labeled "Pockies".

Cards were drawn, sticks were prepared, and Hitomi drew the Student President's Card.

They leaned in and took either end of the stick into their mouth. The slowly nibbled it down, their lips growing closer and closer. When they were about half a centimeter away, Hitomi broke away.

Sangu shrugged, apparently unphased by how close it was. Hitomi was laughing about it.

"You were ready to kiss me weren't you?" She said jokingly. "Kiss other girls often, do you?"

Sangu shrugged. "Well I _prefer _kissing boys, but…" she gave a sly glance to Natsuru.

The next cards drawn were Nastusu's and Mikoto's. Natsuru was horrified, but Mikoto appeared completely calm. After Natsuru had put his side into his mouth, she quickly took her's and bit the stick down, meeting Natsuru's lips with a quick peck.

When Natsuru glanced at her, she gave him a cheerful smile.

After six more draws, Kaede, who had seemed to grow more irritated with each draw, stopped it, saying she was bored and muttering, "never got Natsuru…"

She got up. "Hey Natsuru, want to see something?"

Natsuru got up, not sure what to make of this. "Uh…Sure…"

She grabbed his hand and led him down the hall. The rest of the girls looked back at them, and then began to talk and giggle among themselves.

Natsuru was lead down the hall, around a few corners, and into Sakura's room. It was filled from wall to wall with Entrail Animals.

The Moderators, when they had created White Kampfers, had to find a way to communicate with them directly. The thought of disembodied voices was immediately thrown out, as that would mean Whites could be confused with schizophrenics. The solution was creating stuffed animals. The Moderators would speak through the stuffed animals. This was a good idea, but it eventually came to the Moderator's attention that it would be better to create stuffed animals that no one would ever buy or sell, to keep unwilling Kampfers from just selling the Moderator's mouthpiece. In the end, they created a brand of stuffed animals that were dismembered or horribly disfigured. Strangely enough, even this didn't stop people. Now, White Kampfers that had been denaturalized often sold their now useless animals—which eventually were named Entrails Animals—to private collectors such as Kaede herself.

He looked around himself in wonder.

"Isn't it wonderfull? Sakura asked gleefully.

He merely nodded.

A few hours—and quite a few Mountain Dews to keep them awake—later they were having a pillow fight, when someone knocked a soda over all over Natsuru. He looked down at himself, wet and sticky.

Sakura was extreimely apologetic. "I'm _so _sorry! Look, you can use our shower. It's down the hall to the left.

Thus Natsuru found himself amidst the steam of Sakura's shower, lathering himself down. He rinsed off and stepped out. Then he realized: he haddn't brought his bag into the bathroom.

It was only outside in the hall. If he was careful, no one would see him.

He slowly opened the door and crept out wearing nothing but a towel that barely contained his Kampfer form's chest.

He tiptoed out and grabbed the bag, but as he did he looked behind him. Standing, stareing, was Sakura.

She seemed to be able to do nothing but stare at Natsuru in his barely covered state. Natsuru leapt back into the bathroom, but before he could close the door, his towel slipped, giving Sakura one last glance of his front, now completely unclothed.

He sat in shock in the bathroom for a few minutes, and when he finally left, now fully dressed, Sakura was acting as though nothing had happened.

"Natsuru! We're going to sleep now. But, you see, when I spilled that soda, it got all over the sleeping bags, and that was the last one I have. Everyone else has their own, but all I can offer is either my bed or…you could share my sleeping bag." She seemed hopefull when she said the last part.

"I'll just go with the bed." He told her awkwardly. He didn't want to encourage Sakura's affections any more then he already had.

He got to her room, turned off the light, and slipped under the covers. As he lay there, he began thinking. Who would have though _he _would be trying to discourage _Kaede_? Five weeks ago, he wouldn't have believed it. Now, it was an everyday occurance. Everything seemed so strange.

He must have dozed off, because it seemed darker when he woke up. After a moment, he realized what had woken him up. Sakura had snuck in and slipped under with him. He was petrified by this. Even more so when she brushed against his fingers and he felt that she was wearing nothing.

He wanted to pull back, but he didn't want to alert her that he was awake. What could he do?

The decision was made for him when he heard the window above him shatter. He leapt out of bed to avoid falling glass. Kaede did too, and he saw he was wrong. She was wearing her underwear, which made her look incredibly seductive, making the whole thing seem even more perverse.

Where they had just been lying was a girl wearing long billowing black robes and a pure black mask with a long beak. A Black Kampfer.

Hitomi, Sangu, Akane, and Mikoto dashed into the room, apparently also awakened by the din. A curved blade attached to a wooden shaft flew past Natsuru to Hitomi, who shot it down with a bolt of lightning.

Why was this girl here?

Sakura leapt at the girl, reaching out to touch her every so often. Each touch looked like a gentle caressing of the girl, but the Natsuru knew better. Kaede-san was a Zauber-class, and where her fingers touched, soft pulses of light appeared. After a few seconds, each little patch of light exploded violently.

Even with such a powerfull Zauber, Kaede couldn't work alone. Natsuru raised his hands and, like that first day, fired fireballs, this time smaller and faster. The enemy appeared to be Schwertz-class, similar to Sangu, with little scythes attached to long chains. Sangu seemed to be grappeling with her. Hitomi directed precision bolts at the Black, and soon Akane and Mikoto were blasting away at her.

Natsuru's fire wasn't terribly effective, mostly because he was distracted by Kaede. She was spiraling around lithely. Almost her full body was visible in her bra and panties, and as she twirled gracefully, Natsuru couldn't help but notice her legs and her chest and how she moved her body. If only she liked the _male_ him.

The girl was slowly pushed back, but, not minding her footing, she fell out the window, down three stories on her back. The fall would be fatal to normal humans, but to a Kampfer would be just enough to dissuade the Black. They all relaxed.

Suddenly there was a resounding blast. Everyone looked among themselves, eyes wide. All the girls knew what had happened. Sakura's blasts were time delayed. The girl wasn't just dissuaded; she had been entirely denaturalized.

The party broke up after that, and everyone went home, even though it was only two o'clock in the morning. Even in his own bed, back in his own form, he couldn't get any sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The next week passed in a blur, and Natsuru just rode it out. He went to school in whatever form he woke up in, and was almost asleep in class.

It wasn't until Friday afternoon that he 'woke up'.

He was busy not paying attention in class when the alarm went off.

"All students are warned a Kampfer Proxy Battle has been initiated. All students are advised to either leave the grounds or go to one of the designated classrooms. All idle Kampfer have been asked to report to their team Captains immediately."

Today he had been in female form, and he and Akane lept up from their seats and rushed out the door. They immediately made for the Student President's office. When they got there, they were surprised to find that it was packed. There were Blues there, as it was their arranged meeting point, but Hitomi and many Reds were there too.

Sangu looked up as they entered.

"You two are the last to be accounted for, now we can begin." She sounded dead serious.

Hitomi began to explain why they were using the same rendezvous point. "This is going to be a pretty historic moment, guys. For the first time ever, we will be fighting together." She looked around the room. "We need to be more careful. There are no Whites around to ref for us. They are all engaged in battle. Right now."

Sangu broke in, "The reason this battle started is a small group of Blacks attacked a Red. The Whites tried to help him, but more Blacks just kept coming. It seems like they had been planning this for a while."

"The only thing the couldn't have planned," Hitomi explained, "is that we can work together to help the Whites. If the three other teams are up against the Blacks, there's no way they can put up much resistance."

Sangu came in again. "To be clear: do not follow them if any retreat. They are sure to have reserve forces."

Hitomi started again. "Now this is going to be strange, so you'll have to work with us here. We want all Zaubers on the roof. You can stay in colors, whatever, just don't hurt each other. I'm going to be leading that group. Gewehrs will be in the building. Long-range Gewehrs—those of you with anything more potent than rifles—will be laying down cover from the windows of some free classrooms. The rest of you will be defending all main entrances. Those with entrances closest to the fighting, you can fire into the battlefield. Gewehrs will be led by Akane Mishima. Schwertz, you will be on the ground, being led by Shizuku Sangu. Your group leader is your new team Captain, obay them like you would one of us. Now Zaubers, follow me!"

With that she led a small line of people out the door and down the hall to the stairwell, Natsuru in tow.

When they got to the roof, they saw the scope of the battle. About fifty masked students were attacking an even number of Whites. There were, intermingled in the Whites, a few Red and Blue bracelets, Kampfer who had been caught on the grounds when the battle began. Natsuru spotted Kanji, lying bruised and battered off the side. With a start, he realized that the Red that was attacked might have been him.

The Zaubers had already begun firing out at the crowd. There were bolts of lightning, streams of water, huge gusts of air, and strange beams of light flying from the roof already. Some of the Zaubers had telekinesis and were throwing decorative boulders at the Blacks.

Natsuru raised his hands. If he really was as powerful as many people had told him, this should be a big help.

There was a huge roar and a colossal ball of flame flew from his palms, erupting as it hit the ground in the middle of the Black crowd. Flame fell like rain on nearly all of the Blacks. Oddly, some didn't even show signs of being affected. Natsuru looked closer. They seemed to flit about, disappearing from view and appearing a few feet away. Upon closer examination, Natsuru saw it. Occationally, they seemed to turn to glass; not quite invisible, but in the chaos of battle, good enough. So these were the strange powers he had heard rumors of.

He kept letting out blasts of flame, most smaller than the first. The battle didn't last much longer. Outnumbered, and without the advantage of surprise, they were being driven off, until eventually, they all left the grounds.

A few minutes after the battle, Sangu came up to Natsuru, and directed him into her office.

She sat, silent for a moment, collecting herself.

"This is a change from what we have seen the Blacks do so far." She said.

Natsuru nodded.

Sangu continued, "This would be the first time they have shown interest in Reds and Blues."

Natsuru nodded, a bit puzzled as to where this conversation was going.

Sangu looked up. "We two are possibly the most powerful Kampfer in the school. A power that they might be able to conquer, if we are alone, right?"

Natsuru nodded, still puzzled.

"That said," Sangu went on, "It would make sense to use one of us, outside, with very little apparent security, to act as bait."

Natsuru thought he knew where this might be leading, but he nodded anyway.

"But if that bait was actually with someone just as powerfull—if the two of us were together, say—and the Blacks didn't know it, we could stand a chance of capturing one, don't you think?"

Natsuru was completely lost. "So, what you're saying is that you should act as bait, while I go in male form so I can transform and help capture a Black?"

Sangu nodded triumphantly. "That's exactly what I mean. Do you think it's a good idea?"

Natsuru was still trying to figure out why Sangu was bothering to ask him. "Yeah, sure, why?"

Sangu seemed more herself then, and walked off to leave, throwing him a familiar clever grin. "So it's settled. Meet me at the same fountain at eleven o'clock tomorrow in male form."

Natsuru watched her leave, trying to work out what he had just agreed to.

The next day, Natsuru was there at eleven sharp, in male form, as promised. It seemed like it had been a while before he had been out here in male form.

Sangu was late. It was five minutes after eleven when she came into the square. When she got to the fountain, she reached down and pulled his arm into hers. She was grinning cheerfully.

Who was this, and what had she done to Shizuku Sangu?

Shizuku explained upon seeing his confused look. "We're on a date!" Her face remained cheerful, but her eyes were boring into him as if this was something he should have worked out much earlier.

When he still looked confused she leaned in and whispered, "We need some cover to be wandering around alone together. Just play along."

He put a smile on his face. "So, what do you want to do on our date?" That felt so weird to say.

Sangu brought her hand down to his and entwined her fingers in his. "How about we go see that movie?"

She pointed to a billboard.

So that was exactly what they did.

The movie wasn't that bad. She hadn't gone all out with the act and picked some romance. It had been an action thriller. She had played her part well, gasping, and leaning into him at the right moments. He thought he played his well, too, even remembering to pull the classic 'stretch arms around' move. And the strange thing was, it hadn't been that hard. It had been almost enjoyable.

The rest of the day went by the same way. They ate lunch at a small café. They wandered around, talking about anything unimportant that came to mind. That went to the mall. It was—Natsuru had to admit—a pleasant afternoon.

That evening, they were finishing their mission/psudo-date. They were sitting at the park, leaning against eachother, occationally whispering to each other.

"We didn't get attacked once." Natsuru said. Strangely, he was happy about that.

"No," Sangu said.

A few minutes later she whispered to him, "I think this is long enough, we can probably go home now."

Neither of them moved.

A few minutes later, Natsuru got up.

"Wait," Sangu said.

Natsuru looked down at her. "What?"

Sangu wasn't looking at him. "If this were a real date, you would kiss me goodbye."

Natsuru stood still for a moment.

Sangu got up and looked directly at him.

"Is that really necessary?" he asked quietly. He really didn't need to ask that. He was already leaning into her.

Sangu closed her eyes and replied briefly, "Well we're trying to make this look as real as possible…"

Then Natsuru's lips met hers. It was almost exactly like the one after the pageant, but more subdued, more calm.

After a moment he broke away, mutterd "goodnight" and left.

Sangu watched him leave. She sighed. If only he were a little less clueless.

The Blue Captain paced her office—let's be clear: not the school's Blue Captain, or the area's Blue Captain, or even the country's Blue Captain. She was the Captain of every Blue in the _world._

She had just gotten reports from every country Captain that they had gotten reports from every one of their area Captains, that _they _had gotten a report from virtually every one of their_ local _Capains, that looked almost exactly the same. In each and every one, a Proxy Battle had been initiated not by someone from the opposing team, but by Blacks. Sure, the reports varied. In some the victim was Red, in some it was Blue. In some the victim was unharmed, in some the victim was denaturalized. But every single account had one thing in common. The victim had not been White. The Blacks were going after the Reds and Blues now.

There had to be something she could do.

About and hour later she had done it. The Red world Captain had been contacted, arrangements had been made, money transferred, and letters sent out. This was going to be the largest multi-team meeting in the history of the Proxy system. And where was it to be held?

One of the few countries where they could be sure no one would attempt to sabotage it. Where any actual Kampfer transformations were banned, and the Blacks were forbidden _on pain of death_ to go.

China.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

The next school day, Natsuru went to school as a girl. It seemed he went like that more often. In the halls, though, he was passed a letter by Sangu. He hoped it had nothing to do with what happened over the weekend.

When he finally got a chance to open it, he found that it had nothing to do with that, though. Here's what it said:

_Natsuru_

_ I just got this letter from Arai Saki. I was thinking of bringing you, that way I could leave Akane behind. The World Captain will arrange all the accommodations. Hitomi got a letter almost exactly the same. We'll see who she chooses_

_ Here was what the letter I got said:_

_ Local Captains:_

_ Your area Captains will be forwarding this to you. I am the World Blue Captain. Just a few days ago, I got reports of suspicious Black behavior all across the globe, nearly simultaneously. Considering who the targets were, the Red World Captain and I have decided to call a meeting of as many Reds and Blues as we can rally up. I would like every one of you to be there. Also, I would like each one of you to choose one Kampfer within your jurisdiction to bring with you. I would prefer they be one of the strongest you work with. The meeting will be held in Beijing, China, and the Area Captains have arranged transportation. Tickets and pertinent paperwork are enclosed. Be at your designated transport point at 9:00 sharp tomorrow morning. A leave of absence from school or work has already been arranged, or in the case of your companions, will be arranged by your area and country Captains. ONLY BRING ONE PERSON WITH YOU. We do not want to weaken our defenses in case of another similar strike. If you cannot make it; you are in the hospital, in prison, or for some other reason, please find someone else to go in your stead._

_ Cordially _

_ your World Captain._

_ Pack your bags by eight o'clock and meet me, Hitomi, and whomever she chooses at the fountain tomorrow._

_ Shizuku Sangu_

Natsuru read it over again. Sangu was inviting him on a trip to China to attened what might be the biggest Kampfer event ever.

China was one of the few countries that had turned down the Moderators, insisting that they needed no interference by outside powers. In China, it was illegal to transform, and the Moderators had even lent them equipment that detected Kampfer transformations. More importatntly, the HMR had made a treaty with China that forbade Blacks from even entering the country. It meant that it would be a very secure site for such a meeting.

Because of all this, China had become a popular vacation spot for Kampfer, one of the few places where they could not worry about a Proxy Battle starting. Thus, it wouldn't be _too_ suspicious for a lot of Red and Blue Kampfer to go there. Whites also weren't allowed there either, as the government distrusted the Moderators and didn't want their "eyes and ears" wandering unattended.

The rest of the day passed by uneventfully, the only thing of interest that Natsuru mentioned the trip to Akane and Mikoto. Both had already heard about it, and were envious that Natsuru got to go.

They came home with him and helped him pack.

Natsuru had talked to Sangu, and she had told him that, since he wouldn't be able to transform in China, he would have to stick to one form. Due to the fact that she had been asked to bring her most powerful Kampfer, it would have to be his female form.

"Do you think she—he, I mean—will need this?" Mikoto asked Akane, holding up a bikini top they had bought for him.

Akane looked up. "Naw, the Prez' won't sent 'im anywhere tha' interesting."

They giggled a bit and kept on packing.

Natsuru, in fact was doing absolutely no packing; the two girls were doing it for him.

Mikoto slipped a small package he didn't recognize into his luggage.

"What was that?" he asked.

She leaned in. "Well, I did some math, and all total, you've spent about a month now in female form."

Natsuru felt color rise to his face as he understood that remark. Noticing this, Mikoto explained, "Well, we don't know how your transformation works, so I got you something just in case."

An hour (a whole hour!) later they had packed him everything they thought he would need as a girl on vacation.

The next morning, eight o'clock sharp, he was at the fountain as promised. Leaning against it were Sangu, Hitomi, and looking uncomfortable, as though he really wanted to hit on the girls next to him, was Higashida Kanji.

He walked up to the fountain, eyeing Kanji in a way that he hope suggested to Sangu that he would scream at her if Kanji weren't around.

Sangu obliged him with an explanation. "Hitomi chose Kanji as her companion."

Natsuru gritted his teeth. "I thought you were supposed to bring your _most _powerful Kampfer." He said.

Kanji seemed to take it as an attempt at flirting. "Hey, no one would compare to you." He said in what he obviously thought was a smooth voice. Natsuru turned away, hoping he would take it as extreme hostility, when in reality he was trying to hold back his disgust at his _best friend _trying to hit on him.

"Come on." Hitomi said.

An hour later they found the airport. They looked at their tickets and found the gate, and a few minutes later they were onboard. A little bit after that, they were in the air. About three and a half hours later, they landed in Bejing. And they weren't the only ones. In fact, as they got off the plane, they noticed that almost everyone in the airport either wore a Blue or a Red Kampfer bracelet, and they all traveled in pairs. A few acknowledged each other.

They found a black car outside that had a man standing outside it holding a sign:

Party From

Seitetsu Gakuin High School

Japan

In the car, Kanji kept "falling asleep" and just happing to rest his head on one of the other's chests. They had to keep pushing him off and assuring him that it was not funny. Whenever it was his turn, Natsuru tried to keep his mind off how pleasurable it felt ho have that slight, warm pressure on his chest. If only he could transform.

When he looked out the window, he noticed that it wasn't just this car that was heading to wherever they were going. They were in the midst of a fleet of black cars.

Eventually they stopped at a large resort hotel. It seemed like the entire "fleet" of black transports were stopping there. It was only one o'clock in the current time zone, but to Natsuru it seemed like the plane ride had sucked the energy out of him.

When they got into the lobby, the line at the checkout counter was huge. Every one of the people was wearing either a Red or a Blue Kampfer bracelet. All were under thirty; the Moderators almost only chose people that were in their teens, and since only nine years had gone by since the system began, no Kampfer were very old.

As he looked around, Natsuru spotted a familiar face. It was Saki, in her Kampfer form, checking in. He almost went over and said hi, but decided against it.

It took them almost an hour to check it, and as they left to find their rooms, people were still coming in. The entire hotel must have been reserved, as each of them got their own room, and there were quite a lot of them.

Their rooms were across the hall from each other; Sangu's was right next to Natsuru's and Hitomi's was right next to Kanji's. Hitomi's and Kanji's rooms were right across the hall from Sangu's and Natsuru's.

When Natsuru got into his room, the first thing he did was take his shirt off. This might seem a bit strange, but all through the plane ride, and the car ride, and the wait in line, he felt confined by the ridiculous female clothes he had to wear. It wasn't anything he didn't normally deal with, but the fact that he wouldn't be able to escape it for the rest of the week seemed to make it worse.

Unfortunately, he had forgotten to make sure the door was locked. When he heard the door open and feet approach, out of some reflex ingrained in this body, he screamed girlishly and scrambled to cover himself with the bedsheets.

His worst fears were answered, and the person who had walked in was, in fact, Kanji.

"Perv!" he shouted, cursing himself for sounding so cliché. Hadn't this happed in a billion different manga? Now that he thought about it, he should probably read some, so as to avoid any awkward situations that would be pointed out by them.

Kanji seemed genuinely surprised. "I—Uh—but" When he noticed that Natsuru was wearing nothing but a sheet on his upper half, his eyes widened. He backed out of the room, spluttering apologies and closing the door firmly behind him.

That had been a very disturbing moment for Natsuru. His mind had been disgusted at the thought of his friend looking at him like that. The girl body, however, responded in it's instinctive manner, and his heart rate had sped up, fluttering in his chest. He had been..excited. Ick. He would have to make sure he would never be put in that position again.

He decided the best method to do this would be to put his clothes back on. It was just as well, too. The moment he had gotten dressed, there was a knock on the door. He went to answer it. It was a girl about two years younger than him, smiling cheerfully.

"This resort has a hot spring bath!" she said excitedly. "Come on! We're all going down to see it!"

"I—well—" Natsuru tried feebly to escape, but the girl grabbed his arm and exuberantly dragged him to the bath house.

He walked in and averted his eyes. Of course, he was on the girls' side, being in this girl form. He tried to avoid watching all the variety of girls strip down and slide into the steamy pool.

"hey Natsuru, come on in!" She heard a familiar voice call. She hesitantly looked in the girl's direction and saw that it was Saki. Thankfully, she was almost fully submerged in the water, hiding her body from him. Not all of the girls in the pool, he could see, were quite so concealed. He hoped the redness of his face would be attributed to the heat of the room.

Now all the girls were looking at him expectantly, so, self consciously, he slipped out of his clothes and, breasts bouncing as he lowered dropped down, slid into the spring.

After a while, the disturbingly intimate experience of sharing a room with about fifty other girls (and they assured him that there were still people outside, looking for more) all completely in the nude got a little bit better, and he eventually joined in with the conversations. Most of the time, though, he just closed his eyes and rested his head against the wooden divide between the two baths. To most it would look like he was just another girl there, relaxing in the water. He was really keeping his eyes away from the multitude of female bodies that gradually pressed more and more against him. He still could feel some of them staring at his body. Occasionally he heard a low whistle of appreciation. He tried to ignore these.

He didn't know how long he spent there, eyes closed. He could have falled asleep for all he knew. (if he did, he hoped none of the other girls…well he hoped they had left him alone)

Eventually he was the only one in the pool. He got out and dried off. He quickly put his clothes on.

When he got into the lobby it was dark outside. The lobby was almost empty. The only person there was Saki, who was typing on her laptop.

"Saki-san!" Natsuru called.

Saki looked up quickly, glancing side to side as if she had been caught doing something against the rules. Then she spotted Natsuru, closed the computer, and relaxed.

"Hi Natsuru-chan!" she replied, her cheerfulness, for once, was the one that seemed a bit forced.

Natsuru was a bit suspicious. "What were you working on?"

Saki looked away. "Mmm…nothing. Just…nothing."

Natsuru was reminded of Saki's own warnings of imposters. But it couldn't be, could it? No, Natsuru was imagining things.

"Well, goodnight, Saki-sempi." He said, heading for the elevator.

Saki didn't respond.

In his own room, Natsuru changed and slid into bed. He really hoped he wouldn't transform in his sleep.

In his room, he felt both very, very alienated, and yet surrounded by the people in the rooms next to him.

In this building full of Kampfer, there was no telling what could happen to him during the rest of the week.


End file.
